


what happens on south street

by ninaaavan



Category: GOT7, 방탄소년단 | Bangtan Boys | BTS
Genre: Established Kunpimook Bhuwakul | BamBam/Kim Yugyeom, Established Mark Tuan/Jackson Wang, M/M, Minor Character Death, R.I.P Youngjae's mom
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-28
Updated: 2019-06-13
Packaged: 2019-11-06 18:29:43
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 20
Words: 28,789
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17944889
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ninaaavan/pseuds/ninaaavan
Summary: South Street is a quaint street full of small businesses. Youngjae owns a flower shop and the new business next door is none other than JB's tattoo shop.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I left this story unrated because of language and some sexual humor.

Keys jingled faintly as someone walked down the street behind Youngjae. It was early morning and fairly cold out as Youngjae cleaned the windows of his store with an industrial squeegee. The smell of fresh coffee wafted up his nostrils as the person stopped a few feet away.

  
Keys clinked together more loudly as the person began to unlock the door of their shop. Youngjae glanced to the side to see who it was. It was rare that anyone came to the shop.

  
"Hey," Youngjae smiled brightly at the handsome guy unlocking the shop next door. It had been vacant for some time, so when he noticed the for sale sign disappear and heard rumors from some of the other shop owners that it had been purchased, he thought he would extend a warm welcome to the new neighbor. “I’m Youngjae. I own the flower shop.”

  
The new guy glanced at him with dark, downturned eyes. In the morning light he looked tired, like he was drained of his energy and the chain store coffee in his hand was his lifeline.

  
"Oh! If you don't mind waiting a moment, I have something for you!"

The guy sighed slightly, "I don't have all day."

  
Youngjae's smile fell slightly but he put down his cleaning supplies anyways and dashed inside to get the potted plant he had prepared for his new neighbor and the card.

  
He figured everyone liked succulents so he found one in a tastefully neutral polished gray pot.

  
"To say welcome to the neighbor..." his voice trailed to a stop as he hurried back outside.

  
His new neighbor was gone.

Oh.

  
The crisp November air didn't feel as cold as the chill in his heart. He couldn't leave the plant outside so he opened the shop door and set it down, not wanting to intrude. His neighbor was the cold type, but Youngjae was warm and friendly. He wouldn't bother the new guy, but he at least wanted to extend his greetings. Even if he had proved to be an asshole.

  
He walked back to his shop to finish his cleaning duties before getting to the fun part of his work.

  
"Youngjae-ah!" Called a friendly voice from the entrance of the street.

  
"Huh? Oh, hi Jinyoung-ah!" He smiled widely at his friend.

  
"How are you?"

"I'm well and you?"

  
"Oh, I'm the same as always."

  
"Need some new flowers for the misses?"

  
"Are they from you or me?" He asks with a teasing expression.

  
"As lovely as Chaeyoung is, she's not my type," Youngjae laughs.

  
"I know, I know. Well, she won't say no to flowers, but you know us. If you have some aging flowers or an order that doesn't get picked up, we'd love to take them off your hands."

  
"Of course. I have some roses that have a few days of life left. I'll bring them over on my lunch break."

  
"Thanks, Youngjae. I'll be in the store. We got some new used books yesterday, you should come check them out," he smiles kindly before continuing to his store three doors down.

  
Youngjae picks up all of his cleaning supplies and puts them back into the storage room behind his front counter. The back room is always dusty and smells stuffy because of the green flower foam bricks, but he needs those so he deals with it.

  
He locks the door of his shop and walks down the street to Mark and Jackson's coffee shop.

  
"Markie, Youngjae-ah is here!" Jackson squeals to Mark who is behind him in the kitchen.

  
Mark joins him up front with a calm smile and smooths his hand down Jackson's back to remind him to stay calm.

  
Almost every morning, Youngjae walks over for a tea and to say hello to his friends. The couple are some of his best friends. He considers Jinyoung to be his other best friend. He likes Chaeyoung, Jinyoung's fiance, but he hadn't known the sweet woman for long.

  
Mark and Jackson had opened their coffee shop here two years ago and since then, the four had become close-- Mark, Jinyoung, Jackson, and Youngjae that is. Mark and Youngjae went way back, but had never been closer than they are now.

  
"Jackson-ah, you're always so excited to see me," Youngjae chuckled.

  
"Of course I am! I love you, Youngjae!"

  
Mark laughs and corrects him, "we love you. He's just more expressive than I am. Do you want the regular?"

  
"Yes please," he smiles.

  
The cafe is quiet, a few regulars are tucked away into their corners with laptops and newspapers.

  
"So what's the tea?" Jackson asks.

  
"Yeah, we saw you met the new guy," Mark adds conspiratorially.

  
Whatever light-hearted sense of happiness Youngjae felt was lost at their prodding. He surveys the decorative brass antique coffee maker and takes in the rustic vintage feeling off the shop.

  
"If you can call it that," he mutters. "I said hello, but he didn't answer. I asked him to wait so I could give him the plant and welcome letter I had ready for him, but he ran inside as soon as I left his presence."

  
"What an asshole!" Jackson exclaims. Mark just shakes his head.

  
"The hot ones always are," Mark scoffs.

  
"Did you just call another man hot?" Jackson protests jokingly. While Youngjae had known him to get jealous of the male attention Mark attracted, he only became possessive when the other guy wasn't getting the picture-- that he and Mark were happily married.

  
"I only have eyes for you, my King."

  
The warmth of the cafe has them both in white t-shirts under their brown aprons. How they manage to stay clean baffles Youngjae. He’s sure he would spill coffee on himself and stain a shirt, but then again, Mark and Jackson seem to be more graceful than he is.

  
Youngjae's eyes trail over the worn, dark wooden floors. The vintage light bulb fixtures produced a soft golden glow. The front windows let in lots of light and the walls were covered in photos and decorative tea cup saucers.

  
"I heard that it's going to be a tattoo shop," Mark says.

  
"In our Christian neighborhood?" Jackson fake gasps. "I'm just kidding. I thought it was going to be one of those second hand thrift stores."

  
"I'd prefer that to a tattoo shop," Youngjae says.

  
When he sees their questioning looks he feels the need to explain.

  
"You know me, I love tattoos. It would be way too convenient."

  
Mark grins, "are you worried you'd let the hottie tattoo every inch of your body? Maybe with his mouth?"

  
"I can't understand how anyone thinks you're the more mature of your little duo," Youngjae comments dryly.

  
Jackson hands him his tea and a muffin, "for putting up with Mark" before shooing Youngjae out of the store with a wink, "you won't want to hear what I say to him next."  
Youngjae's eyes widen and he mumbles goodbye before heading back across the street into his plant shop.

  
He spends the morning filling orders before setting out to deliver to his regular customers. He opens the store at eleven, turning the lights on in the backroom. He can hear very loud singing next door, followed by a crash, and lots of yelling and cursing.

  
He blinks and debates on whether or not he should check next door before discerning that there are two voices so everything is probably fine and he shouldn't bother his neighbor.

  
He hears the bell of the front door jingle a brief moment later and rushes to the front counter, tying his green apron around his waist.

  
"Good morning," he greets with a wide smile.

  
A tall guy, maybe a little younger than him, comes to the front desk with a sheepish smile.

  
"Morning. Do you happen to have a tool kit here? Oh, I'm Kim Yugyeom. I work nextdoor."

  
"Hi Yugyeom, I'm Youngjae. Follow me," he smiles and leads Yugyeom to the back room. He stands on his tip toes to pull down his tool kit. It wasn't much, but it had wrenches, a hammer, some screwdrivers, and whatever other basic tools he needed.

  
Yugyeom chuckles and grabs it for him, using his extra few inches to his advantage. He smells like new ikea furniture, Youngjae thinks.

  
"Thanks. The boss is mad at me because I forgot to pack ours and because my singing 'gets on his last nerve'. He's such a Tsundere though," he rolls his brown eyes. "Someone gave him a plant this morning and he's already got it set up on his desk. Oh, was it you?"

  
Youngjae's cheeks flush slightly, "I assumed he'd throw it away."

  
"Nah, JB-ssi is actually a softie. He just has that tough guy exterior, yanno, Tsundere."

  
"I didn't know what it meant," Youngjae chuckled. "But I'm glad he liked it."

  
"Yeah, well he may actually kill me if I don't get back over there. But thanks for the tool set, I'll bring it back either this evening or tomorrow, if that's okay."

  
"Of course, just bring it when you're done. I don't think I've needed it in a while anyways."

  
"Thanks, Youngjae," Yugyeom smiled before exiting the shop. Youngjae continued to fill orders. Since November was coming to a close, lots of people wanted flowers and plants to decorate their homes for Thanksgiving and Christmas orders were already piling in.

  
His employee, and friend, Jimin, would be in the shop shortly. Then he could take his lunch break and walk over to Jinyoung's bookshop with the roses.

  
Jimin was a cute guy with fluffy hair that he kept dyed a light brown, sparkly brown eyes, high cheekbones, and plush lips. Youngjae hired him to help out with the store based on his character. They had met up for a blind date once, but had discovered they were better as friends.

  
Besides, Youngjae preferred his men taller, darker, and with broader shoulders.

  
Youngjae filled his time with watering the plants, pulling dead leaves out of the soils and trimming some of the plants.

  
"Hello hello," Jimin sang as he walked into the store.

  
"Hey, Jimin," Youngjae smiled.

  
"Are there people next door?" He asked.

  
"Yeah, the new guys are moving their stuff in and setting up."

  
"Oh, you met them?"

  
"Sorta," he shrugged. "Do you think I could take my lunch break now? I was going to stop by over at the bookstore."

  
"Sure thing, boss man."

  
"Don't call me that," Youngjae chastised.

  
Jimin laughed, "sorry sorry. Now go, I'll hold down the fort."

 

Youngjae went into the backroom and ditched his apron, opting to wear his coat instead. He grabbed the flowers for Jinyoung and walked down the street.

  
From inside the shop next door, he could hear hip hop music blaring, but he ignored it. Surely the music was only so loud because they were setting up.

  
He prayed it wouldn't turn into a problem after the store opened.

  
"Jinyoung?" Youngjae called entering the store.

  
Geometric bookshelves lined the walls in light wood. The store smelled like old books, but Youngjae found it comforting. There was a draft in the store that brought a slight chill to the air.

  
"I'll be there in a second," he heard Jinyoung's muffled voice call.

  
He waited, checking out the cool things that filled some of the squares of the book shelves, the labels of book genres scrawled in cursive on the walls, and the cool sitting area in the center of the store.

  
"Ah, thanks, Youngjae," Jinyoung said as took the flowers and led Youngjae to the back. "Can I offer you something to drink?"

  
"No thanks, I have to get back and eat my lunch before Jimin trips and breaks all my displays."

  
"Were you hiring someone for the holidays? To help with the extra orders?"

  
"I haven't had anyone apply," Youngjae shrugged.

  
"How about Jimin? Does he have any friends looking for employment?"

  
"I didn't think to ask. I mean, it's weird since all of his friends are older than me."

  
"Your mom's shop is a nice place to work. Especially for people our age who want seasonal work. They can pick up shifts between school or whatever so that they get spending money for the holidays."

  
"That's a good point. I'll ask him. If you hear of anyone looking, tell them to apply," Youngjae smiled before bidding Jinyoung good bye.

  
Youngjae walked back to the shop to eat his lunch before asking Jimin if he has any friends that would want to work with them.

 

"Well, Taehyung might. I'm not positive, though."

  
"Well, just ask him and let me know what he says."

  
Taehyung was a nice kid, Jimin's best friend with other worldly good looks. He wasn't Youngjae's type-- reminded him too much of himself with his wide smile and boisterous laugh.

  
"Alright. Are you off early today?"

  
"If you're up for closing by yourself. I'd like to visit my mom."

  
"You go, I'll see you tomorrow."

  
Youngjae smiled gratefully, before packing his few belongings and trudging towards the hospital.


	2. Chapter 2

Two weeks had passed and the tattoo shop next door had since opened its doors. 

Yugyeom had come by to drop off the tool kit that he'd borrowed two weeks prior. 

He leaned against the counter and told Youngjae about a piece he'd just finished designing for himself. Youngjae listened intently as he arranged flowers in vases and cornucopias. 

"So it's this lotus flower that means a lot to me. It's got a lot of shading and stuff. I want my friend Jungkook to do it, but I'm not sure if he can get it right. He's like me, we basically just finished our apprenticeship."

"Oh really? Where are you gonna get it?" Youngjae asked. 

"Right here," Yugyeom gestures to his side. "It's gonna be big. But back to my issue, I want JK to do it, but I don't want to offend him if I ask Jaebum to do the shading and it's kind of a bad idea to ask one artist to finish the others piece, you know?"

"I hadn't thought about that, but that makes sense."

"I wish I could do it on myself," he whines. 

"What do you think you'll do?"

"Maybe I'll just ask Jungkook to do it. I trust him. Plus I already have a tattoo that JB did."

"Really?"

"Mm," Yugyeom nodded. "My boyfriend and I have couples tattoos on our ankles that JB did."

"Cute."

Youngjae asked Yugyeom what he thought of his arrangement. 

"It's got a lot of nice colors?" He offered, not sure how to critique it.

"Good enough."

"What're you gonna do with those left over flowers?" Yugyeom wondered. 

Youngae shrugged, "I would make another arrangement out of them, but I don't have enough of this kind."

Yugyeom's voice took a shy tone, "do you think I could have them?"

"Sure. Are they for a special someone?" He prodded.

"I think my boyfriend would like them," Yugyeom nodded, tapping his fingers against the desk lightly. 

"Oh! Let me whip something up for him," Youngjae smiled. He grabbed an extra vase and stuck the leftover flowers in. He walked over to the coolers and grabbed some filler greenery to make the arrangement fuller for the boyfriend he'd never met. 

"You don't have to. BamBam's not really picky. He just likes pretty things."

"It's not a problem. I like to make people happy." His fingers deftly worked on creating a bow to put around the lip of the vase.

"I'm sure he will be. How much do I owe you?"

"Oh, please. I won't take your money for this."

"Yugyeom-ah!!" Called a loud voice as the door opened. 

Youngjae looked to see who it was and noticed it was a tall, skinny boy with darker skin and big lips. He was a cutie.

"Speak of the devil," Yugyeom muttered with a teasing smile. 

The lanky boy came and wrapped his arms around Yugyeom, sending a bright smile to Youngjae which he returned. 

"Hi, I'm this loser's boyfriend, BamBam," he offered his hand. 

Youngjae shook it, "I'm Youngjae."

BamBam gasped, "those are so pretty!"

Yugyeom's cheeks flushed, "they're for you, Babe."

"Really?" His eyes went wide. "You're so sweet, Yugy. Thank you so much Youngjae, these are so beautiful!"

"I'm glad you like them."

"Jaebum-ah told me he wanted you back in the shop asap. Something about customer wanting a private tattoo session."

Yugyeom groaned, "I swear to God if I have to tattoo someone's vagina again, I'm gonna scream."

"It was lovely to meet you, Youngjae."

"It was nice to meet you too, BamBam. Stop by anytime," he smiled as the two retreated. Yugyeom offered him a wave as he wrapped his arm around BamBam's waist.

He laughed lightly to himself at the two of them. For the point-two seconds he’d met them, he seemed to like them a lot.

Not much time passed until Jimin breezed into the shop, smelling of cocoa butter and shampoo, hair still wet. 

"You're going to catch a cold," he warned. 

"Taehyung wanted to know if he could come by for an interview today.”

"Sure," Youngjae answered. He ignored the way Jimin ignored him.

When Taehyung came later, Jimin watched the shop, serving customers on their way home. He didn't work the shift that often anymore, but he loved seeing people take the time out of their days to buy flowers to make others happy. 

Youngjae interviewed Taehyung in the backroom. Since he had worked with Jimin for such a long time, he knew a bit about Taehyung already. The two were best friends, so Youngjae heard a lot of stories when there were no clients to be catered to. The young man seemed to be of good character, but for the sake of formality Youngjae asked him questions about his work experience, teamwork, and skills.

Taehyung was going to make a good addition to his team, working weekends and two nights a week until the seasonal swing really kicked in. Jimin would start early so that Youngjae could focus on arranging and delivering flowers. 

He left Taehyung in the back room with paperwork to fill out and told him he could start when he wanted, to which he replied the sooner the better. So it was settled, he had a new employee to help with the holiday rush. 

At the end of the day, Youngjae sent Jimin and Taehyung home so that he could clean up. He made two bouquets with left over flowers. One for Jinyoung and Chaeyoung, and one for Mark and Jackson. 

He dropped Mark and Jackson's off with Jin and Hoseok, the two who worked the evening shift. Then he went to Jinyoung's and dropped the flowers off with him, saying hello to Namjoon, the other employee. He was Jin's boyfriend. Yongjae admired how everyone on the street seemed to get along. Couples got along with other couples, and those who weren’t dating were still friends with the other couples. 

He was thinking of how Jinyoung's fiance's friends were dating and owned a catering company that made the pastries for Mark and Jackson's shop. Yugyeom was quickly becoming his friend and he thought he could invite BamBam and Yugyeom to the next dinner night they had. Jin's restaurant should be open by then.

Ah, how things change so slowly and then all at once.

A strong, clear voice broke him out of his thoughts. 

"Are those flowers for your boyfriend?"

"Boyfriend?" Youngjae parroted, not sure who he could be referring to.

"You walk by here with flowers for that Twinky guy at the bookstore a lot."

"Oh, no they're for him to give to his fiance," Youngjae laughed. "Did you just call him a twink?"

"So what if I did?"

Youngjae cackled, "he's probably the only straight person on the street and you picked him to be gay?"

Jaebum raised an eyebrow at him. 

"I'm Youngjae, and you are?"

"Jaebum."

"Do you own 'Sorry Mom Tattoo'?" He wondered. 

Jaebum nodded, "yeah. It's my pride and joy."

"That's super cool. When the neighbors and I heard that a tattoo shop was opening, I thought I was in trouble."

"You don't like tattoos? They're not good for your little flower boy image?" Jaebum accused defensively, tone biting. 

Youngjae let out a cackle, "quite the opposite. I love tattoos. The guys at Espresso Lane named my regular drink at the cafe after the quote I have tattooed on my shoulders."

"I hope it's not the Tall, Dark, and Handsome."

Youngjae laughed, "that one's Jinyoung-ah's."

"Bookstore twink?" He guessed. Youngjae confirmed with a nod. 

"Well, I gotta go drop these off. Have a date at the hospital," Youngjae excused himself with a small, forced smile before walking away. 

Jaebum didn't say anything, distracted by his thoughts over what his cute neighbor had meant. 

He turned and walked back into the parlor, ignoring Jungkook's smirk.

"How's the cutie flower boy? He seemed to think you were pretty funny."

"Jungkook, don't you have floors to clean?"

Jungkook groaned, "just because I told you Youngjae wouldn't go for you, Anime Protagonist Number One?"

"No, for disrespecting me in my own parlor."

Jungkook groaned again, louder this time, before going to clean. 

Yoongi popped his head outside of his work room, "could you all pipe down? I'm with a client."

Jaebum looked at Jungkook pointedly who just mumbled, "sorry Suga Tats."

Jaebum thought he said Suga Tits, but realized that Jungkook probably didn't feel like having his teeth boiled anytime soon and just referenced his Instagram handle. 

He sighed and made his way to his office, glancing at the little potted plant sat next to the picture of his cat.


	3. 3

"Taehyung-ah," Youngjae called. Taehyung had been working in the shop for about a week at this point.

The young man was a good fit for the store. Not only did he fill an empty time slot that neither Youngjae nor Jimin wanted to work regularly, he did the jobs that neither of them wanted to do. Youngjae viewed cleaning as a necessary evil and Jimin wasn’t messy, but he didn’t like to clean. In a shop where products wilted and sat in soil, cleaning was a regular affair.

Taehyung didn’t mind cleaning, especially since he didn’t have a broad knowledge of plants or a trained eye for creating arrangements.

All in all, Taehyung was like the grease for squeaky wheels. He made things a lot easier.

"Yeah boss?" He answered, head peeking around the corner into the back room.

"Don't call me that. And could you go next door and ask if they have a pack of printer paper? I'll repay them. I forgot I was on my last pack, but because I used the box for storage, I thought I had more last time I went out."

"Sure thing, boss. I mean Youngjae."

Youngjae heard the front bell jingle and assumed it was Taehyung leaving.

He waited, computer screen lit with the print preview version of the receipt he needed to print for his files.

And he waited, busying himself with arrangements.

And he waited, answering phone calls.

And he waited, answering emails from business clients and checking on the status of his shipments.

He didn't think it would take twenty minutes to ask for some paper, but decided to give Taehyung the benefit of the doubt.

Maybe they were out, too. It was possible Taehyung had gone to another store to ask or had gone to buy some.

He would have sent him a text message if he did that, right? Or sent a smoke signal?

To be sure, he flipped the sign on his door to read ‘be back shortly’ and stepped next door.

The tattoo parlor was spic and span clean, smelled faintly of lemon disinfectant, and was decorated in a modern style with tattoo look books sprawled across the coffee table in the waiting area and lining a bookshelf. Youngjae assumed each artist had their own book.

JB, Yugyeom, Jungkook, Suga were all printed on the spines of binders.

A few designs were framed on the walls, but minimally so-- a contrast to what he usually found in tattoo shops. One of a geometric lotus looked like Yugyeom’s, but what really caught his eye was a blackwork series of flowers and plants.

"Kim Taehyung," Youngjae said in his serious voice. He watched with a slight degree of pleasure as the man's shoulders tensed and he slowly spun around.

"Youngjae-ah," he greeted.

"Am I interrupting?"

"No, boss. Jungkook here was just struggling to get the papers."

"Sorry, Youngjae, was it? I'm not used to the new set up here. Then I had to fight to get the paper out of it's box."

"You wouldn't happen to be lying to me, would you?"

Jungkook paled and shook his head no.

"Well, now that I have the paper, I guess I'd better get back to work. Thanks, Jungkook."

Jungkook didn't say anything, just saluted Taehyung as he was escorted back to the Sunshine Room.

"Youngjae, I'm sorry. I know I was on the clock, but he was so cute," he whined.

"Flirt with him another time. And to make it up to me, I want you to clean out the bottom of the coolers."

Taehyung pouted but went to do it anyways.

Youngjae sighed and finally printed the receipt after thirty minutes of waiting. He shook his head at the thought of Taehyung wasting work time when he could surely just ask the boy for a phone number or something.

. . .

“Hi Jae. How’s everything going today?” Mark asks as he steps into the store. Youngjae’s just getting ready to leave for the evening. 

“Fine, Mark. How’re you?”

Mark sighs lightly, “not so good. But you’re probably heading to see your mom, right? So I’ll just head out.”

“I can spare a few minutes if you need to talk about something.”

He takes a minute to really look at Mark, who’s eyes won’t meet his now. They study the shelves of potted plants and decorative items. 

“I’ll save it for later.”

Youngjae gives Mark a hug, “we’ll talk tomorrow.”

“Okay.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one's a little short. When I initially wrote this story I had no plan for it so the beginning doesn't necessary always follow the same pattern as the end. Oh well. 
> 
> Follow me on Twitter :)  
> https://twitter.com/ninaaavan


	4. Chapter 4

When Jackson sees Youngjae through the glass of the cafe window, he hurries to let the younger in out of the cold. 

“What’re you doing here so early? We’re not even open yet.”

“I came to talk to Mark.”

“Oh,” Jackson blinked. “Well, I’m glad you’re not working so early. He’s in the back, I’ll give you two a minute to talk.”

Youngjae shot him a smile and walked into the back area of the cafe. The kitchen was empty, save for Mark who was scanning the shelves of baked goods from his catering duo.

“Hey,” Youngjae greeted. “Ready to talk now?”

“You didn’t have to get up so early! I assumed you’d come on your break.”

“Yeah, but you’ll be busy then and I can go over and do paperwork in the shop.”

Mark raised an eyebrow at him before surveying the kitchen. He let out a sigh. 

“It’s my parents.”

Youngjae instantly felt a sympathetic blow to his chest. He knew Mark hadn’t had a good relationship with his parents, so he could only imagine what they wanted or what had happened.

“Go on,” he gently urged Mark, leaning his body against a counter.

“They want me to visit them. They say they’re sorry.”

Mark’s eyes wouldn’t meet Youngjae’s, but he was patient nonetheless.

When the two were younger, Mark barely talked to anyone outside of their friend group. He was the oldest, too, so he tried not to rely on his younger friends. 

“It just feels like it’s too late now. I don’t want anything to do with them.”

“But?” Youngjae provided. If it were that easy, Mark wouldn’t have circles under his eyes. 

“But I. . . What if I miss them? What if this is the time things could end up being okay?”

“If that’s something you’d like to try, then I think you should. Clearly it’s bothering you.”

Mark was quiet and then raised his eyes to meet Youngjae’s. 

“You don’t think it’s too easy? For me, to forgive them, I mean?”

“Just because you speak with them doesn’t mean you forgive them. Maybe hear them out.”

Mark nodded slightly and Youngjae could see in his eyes that he was still deliberating. 

“You don’t have to do it today. Give it a few days, maybe. Just, try to get some sleep. Being up all night isn’t healthy.” Youngjae gestured to his own tired eyes. 

“Thanks, Jae. You’re always so helpful.”

“I try my best,” he beamed at Mark.  
. . .   
Youngjae began to walk after locking up his store. He had spent too much time working on arrangements. Tomorrow would be a busy morning with all of his deliveries. The weeks before Christmas were always busy.

It was a little later than usual, so his visit with his mom would be cut short.

"Hey, Youngjae." 

"Oh, hey, Jaebum."

"Are you going out for the night?"

Youngjae nodded once, "I'm going to the hospital."

"Oh, I’m goin’ to the post office. Do you want a ride?"

"Really? That would be great."

"Hurry up, I have to be there by eight."

Youngjae felt pleased that Jaebum offered him a ride. He slid into the passenger seat of Jaebum's old BMW. The leather seats were well worn but the car smelled clean with maybe a hint of pine. It was cold in the car, but once the heat kicked in it would be pleasantly warmer than the outside.

"Why do you go to the hospital so often? You were there two weeks ago too, weren't you?"

"Well," he hesitated. 

"Spit it out, you sick or somethin'?"

"My mom is. She has terminal cancer."

"Oh," Jaebum was taken aback. Was it Youngjae’s imagination or did he shrink into himself a little bit? "Sorry to hear that. My grandfather passed from cancer, but I barely knew 'im." 

"Sorry to hear that. It's tough watching your loved ones die. Her store is the only thing I'll really have to remember her by."

"So that's why you're a florist?"

Youngjae nodded, "my mom taught me everything I know. I like it, but it’s maybe not my favorite thing.”

“Not what you would’ve chosen for yourself?” JB looked contemplative.

“I think I would've pursued singing if I didn't take it over, but there was no guarantee for that."

Jaebum stopped the car in front of the hospital and Youngjae got out, "thanks a lot, Jaebum. I'll see you. . . whenever."

Jaebum saluted him and drove off as Youngjae walked into the hospital. He greeted the nurses and walked the familiar route to his mother's room. 

"Hi, mom."

"Hi honey," she rasped. Youngjae removed his scarf and coat before sitting next to her to tell her about his day.   
The nurses let him stay a few extra minutes that day.  
. . . 

Youngjae had just come back from his deliveries and greeted Jimin. 

"Hey, the hot guy from next door was looking for you."

"Oh? Did he say what he wanted?"

"He left this for you," Jimin reached out a small finger to point at something. There was a grocery bag on the counter so Youngjae went to check what was inside of it.   
It was a blanket with a note. 

'I heard cancer patients get cold a lot.'

Youngjae was touched. His mother already had two blankets at her disposal-- one from home and a super warm weighted blanket Youngjae thought would help with any anxiety she might feel-- but this was the nicest thing one of his friends had ever done.

Everyone else would send her flowers and cards from time to time, which Youngjae appreciated because flowers made his mother happy, but something about this damn blanket had tears in his eyes. 

"Are you okay?" Jimin asked, standing on his tiptoes to peer over Youngjae's shoulder. 

"Shut up," he gasped, slapping Youngjae's shoulder lightly. "That's so sweet, I think I got cavities. Wait, are you crying?"

Youngjae brushed his tears away and laughed, "this is one of the nicest things someone's ever done for my mom, for me."

Jimin rubbed his shoulder and tried to lighten the mood, "you should go say thank you-- maybe show him how thankful you are? On your knees?" He winked and poked his tongue into his cheek to feign sucking dick. 

Youngjae scowled and shoved him away, "gross, Jimin. Way to ruin a touching moment."

"Aw, come on. You know you don't want to make your eyes all puffy by crying. I had to make you laugh or, you know, hit me."

Youngjae sighed, "thanks. I'll go see him after I get caught up."  
. . .

An R&B song was playing from one of the rooms in the tattoo parlor and the low hum of one of the machines could faintly be heard. 

Yugyeom was at the reception desk and sent him a grin when he entered. 

"Youngjae-ah! What can I do for you?"

"I wanted to see Jaebum," he answered.

"He's with a client right now. Probably won't be done for an hour or so."

A frustrated sigh left Youngjae's mouth before he relaxed his shoulders and moved on. Nothing he could do about it. "Can I leave a message for him?"

"Sure," Yugyeom cocked his head to the side. "Everything okay?"

"Everything's fine," he answered with a small smile. Yugyeom handed him a block of sticky notes and put the cup of pens on the counter.

Youngjae took a pen and a sticky note before scrawling 'thank you so much --YJ' on it. 

While he did that, Yugyeom put the things away and admired the fresh bouquet of flowers that Youngjae had brought over. They matched the interior of the shop somehow. 

"BamBam wanted to know if you were available next weekend? We're having a Christmas get together thing here at the shop. Well, JB is, but BamBam is kind of in charge of planning it. He wants the fellow South street shop owners to come."

"Uh, yeah. Sounds like fun," Youngjae smiled. The smile didn't quite meet his eyes.

"Are you really okay?" Yugyeom wondered.

"Just a little stressed."

"Who do we have here?" A voice drawled. Youngjae looked up to see a short man with lots of piercings and platinum blonde hair.

"This is Youngjae," Yugyeom introduced him. "He owns the flower shop next door."

"Ah, Flower Boy."

"Youngjae, this is Yoongi."

Yoongi didn’t have a book, if Youngjae recalled correctly. 

"Nice to meet you," Youngjae gave a polite smile. 

"Are you here for a tattoo, Pretty?"

"Not today," he flushed slightly. 

"You would look really good with a sleeve," he said, eyes taking in Youngjae's body. 

"Ah, thanks. I can't get any more tattoos for a while, but when I can again, I'll let you know. But I have to head out, Yugyeom."

"Bye, Youngjae-ah!"

"See you in my dreams, Flower Boy," Yoongi flirted. 

Youngjae just waved as he exited the store. 

"Jimin, there's a tattoo artist next door who's about as flirty as you are. And he's your height, too."

"I thought you were gone for the day? Tae's almost here. But really? You had to make a dig at my height? What are you an inch taller than me?"

"Did you miss the part where I said flirty guy, your type?"

"You said your 'height', Jae. Don't mince your words."

"Whatever, he's cute. You should talk to him sometime."

"You keep me too busy in here for that," he rolled his eyes. "Now hurry up before you miss visiting hours."

Youngjae cackled as he left. Visiting hours wouldn't be over for a while and they both knew it.

He took the blanket Jaebum had given him and walked the few blocks to the hospital. He greeted the nurses and doctors he passed on the way and they all acknowledged him, various levels of exhaustion showing on their faces. 

"Hey mom," Youngjae greeted his mother. 

She smiled widely, "hi Honey."

"Good day today?" He asked, taking in her condition. Her smile was brighter today than it had been for awhile. 

He nodded, "do you remember I told you about the tattoo shop next door? The one that opened where Mr. Park had his studio?"

She nodded her head, "yeah. The one with the cold owner, right?"

"He's not as cold as he makes himself seem," Youngjae flushed remembering Yugyeom told him the plant he gave him was on his desk, the ride he had given him, and the blanket in the bag. "He drove me here yesterday and today he left this blanket at the shop for you."

His mom let out a light squeal before coughing lightly, "that's so sweet of him. Tell me more about him, Youngjae-ah."

Youngjae described him and his 'Tsundere' personality, as Yugyeom had described him when they first met. 

"You like him," his mother smiled wisely. 

"Maybe a little," he shyly agreed. 

Her smile softened, "I haven't seen you this happy in a long time, Jae."

"I don't think he likes me back or anything, so I don't want to get my hopes up."

"You should ask him out."

"Eomma," he whined.

"Do it for me, Youngjae. I'd like to see you really happy before..."

"Don't say it," he begged her, eyes watering. Her eyes watered, too. 

She held his hand.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Papa Tuan would never.


	5. Chapter 5

"Youngjae, you made it!" BamBam cheered as he entered the parlor after hours. Taehyung was being dragged by Jimin behind him. They’d all changed into their party attire at the store after working a little later than normal with the expectation that they would start working later in the morning. 

“Hey BamBam, Yugyeom.”

Jimin was excited to party and Taehyung was nervous to see Jungkook. He'd been complaining that Jungkook had seen him dancing embarrassingly while tending to the plants in the shop while he was closing a few days ago. Why they hadn’t gone out yet was beyond Youngjae, but Taehyung didn’t seem to like talking about it when Jimin wasn’t in the store.

Youngjae smiled widely as he greeted everyone. He felt like most of his friends were here along with a few people he didn't recognize. It was odd to see all of his friends and acquaintances dressed so nicely and not in their work or street clothes. Yoongi looked dapper in a black turtleneck and glasses. Jackson had on a white silk shirt that exposed some of his muscular chest. Mark wore a houndstooth suit jacket with greens, reds, and a cream or yellow base. Jimin wore a semi sheer blouse and Taehyung had on a red silk shirt. Jungkook wore a white t-shirt under a black suit jacket. 

He could go on, but really everyone looked nice. It was so different compared to their normal casual clothing. He couldn’t remember the last time he saw Mark and Jackson out of their uniforms and in nice clothes.

"Hey, Jinyoung-ah, Chaeyoung," he smiled. 

"Oh, Youngjae! Merry Christmas. We got you a little something," Chaeyoung told him. "As a thank you for the flowers you send us throughout the year."

"You shouldn't have," he gasped, pulling several stained glass roses out of the bag. They were carefully wrapped, delicate green glass and reddish petals.

"I made it," Chaeyoung smiled widely, clearly proud of herself. "You usually send us roses. I was going to make you a whole dozen, but well, someone left them at the bookstore and Namjoon got to them."

"Namjoon is my employee, not a toddler," Jinyoung explained to the young kid next to him. "He’s just very destructive by accident. Oh, Youngjae, this is my younger brother Hyunjin. He's staying with us this holiday."

"Nice to meet you," he smiled and shook the young man's hand. He could see that they were brothers now. Hyunjin really looked up to his brother from what he could tell by the expression. "And thank you, Chaeyoung. They're beautiful."

“You own the flower shop?” Hyunjin asked Youngjae. 

“I sure do. Are you still in high school?”

Hyunjin nodded, “I’m in my final year.”

“Awesome.”

Jaebum passed by and Youngjae caught a glimpse of him from the corner of his eye. 

"Excuse me," he told them before going to find Jaebum. "This is a really nice party, Jaebum."

And it was. The parlor, normally black and white and cleanly decorated, had been turned into a winter wonderland with string lights and Christmas decorations. Poinsettias and sparkly arrangements, that BamBam had borrowed from him were expertly placed around the room. Tomorrow they’d be stocked again for customer to buy or pick up. Using other people’s orders seemed. . . cheap, but there was no harm in it since the arrangements had already been made, he supposed.

Jaebum looked good, too. His hair was pushed back exposing the clear skin of his forehead. He had on a black button up and gray pants.

"Thank BamBam," he mumbled. "I didn't do any of this."

"You let us use your parlor and I'm pretty sure he put most of the costs on your credit card," Youngjae laughed. 

"You're not wrong. Oh, what's in the bag?"

"Oh! Aren't they beautiful?" He pulled one of the roses out of the bag. "Chaeyoung made them for me."

"You can put them in my office. So they don't break or anything."

"That would be great," he smiled. 

Jaebum led him to his office and Youngjae set down the roses, taking note of the cat picture on his wall and the succulent he had given him on his desk. 

"Is this your cat?" He asked, before they left. 

Jaebum nodded, "Nora."

Youngjae was reminded, for just a split second, of a high school teacher who had professional portraits of herself done with her cat. He couldn’t imagine someone as chic as JB doing that, yet he pictured it and swallowed a laugh.

"She's beautiful."

"Thanks," he said. Was it just Youngjae or did Jaebum's ears tinge pink?

They rejoined the party and split up as Youngjae went to compliment Mark and Jackson on their outfits. He watched from the corner of his eye as Yoongi approached Jimin with his deviant smile. Much to his surprise, Jimin looked flustered and Yoongi’s smile turned brighter and more genuine.

Jin, clad in a pink button up, joined them and told them that his restaurant should open come January after a snag with the health department and the old building. Jackson teased him, saying that it was a good thing he wasn’t leaving the cafe right away since his replacement hadn’t been found yet.

Youngjae excused himself to grab a glass of champagne and grab a bite to eat. A few hors d’oeuvres were on the front desk. He took them in, wrinkling his nose at the cucumber salad and deciding to wait on eating anymore food.

“BamBam, you did a fantastic job decorating. Everything is so pretty in here. I don’t think I could have done a better job.”

“Oh, thank you! I really wanted to have like a winter wonderland in here since we’re not getting snow this winter.”

“You totally accomplished it.”

“Want a refill?” He asked, gesturing to the bottle of champagne behind the desk. 

“Sure.”

BamBam grinned, “we should get JB drunk sometime. He likes to sing. Yugyeom said that he started breakdancing once but forgot that he was on the table and slid off.”  
Youngjae cackled at the image his brain conjured, “that had to hurt.”

“Yeah, he hurt his back, but he’s fine now.” 

“Oh, the time Jaebum slid off the coffee table? Yeah. I thought he had slipped a disc, but he was so drunk he didn’t feel it.” Yugyeom’s chuckle was really a cute sound and BamBam smiled at him adoringly. 

Youngjae, feeling like he was intruding somehow, glanced around to tell Jimin that he could come in late tomorrow, but the guy was mysteriously gone, along with Yoongi. His eyes found Taehyung and Jungkook talking, leaning against the wall. Jungkook’s fingers were rubbing the silk shirt Taehyung was wearing before Taehyung lowered his arm.  
Interesting.

Champagne flowed for the rest of the night as the shop owners and employees talked. BamBam was a great party planner, Youngjae had decided. There were ample party foods, including cocktail shrimp, spinach and artichoke dip, and finger sandwiches, and plenty of drinks-- but mostly champagne. He caved and got food when the champagne started making his head feel light.

Jinyoung, Chaeyoung, and Hyunjin headed out early, wishing him a happy holidays.

Before he knew it, it was almost midnight and he was sitting on the couch, feeling his energy drain from him as he drank one too many glasses of champagne. Hoseok had kept refilling his glass all night and now he was feeling it.

"Youngjae?" Mark called softly. 

He glanced up. 

"I think you've had enough," his older friend said softly. Youngjae could only nod and surrender the glass. "Jackson and I will walk you home in a few minutes."

Youngjae nodded and drank the water Mark gave him. He sat quietly for a few minutes, concentrating on counting his friends. Most everyone was getting ready to leave now, if they hadn’t already.

Jaebum came to sit next to him.

His dark eyes took in Youngjae's slightly flushed, sleepy face. 

"Drink this," he handed Youngjae his glass. 

"What is it?" Youngjae wondered, looking at the clear liquid. 

"Water, now drink," he commanded. Youngjae obeyed, sucking down the cool water. "Yugyeom, bring me some more water."

"Please?" He scoffed before going to do it.

"Thanks," Jaebum said after he brought two bottles back.

"Is Youngjae okay?"

"I'm great," he winked. 

"Too much champagne?" He asked rhetorically before walking to find BamBam and Jungkook. 

"Oh good, you have water," Jackson slurred as he and Mark approached. 

"Are you ready, Youngjae-ah? We'll walk him home, Jaebum." 

“You sure?” He asked Mark and Jackson. Jackson was clearly four sheets to the wind, and Youngjae was three sheets gone, so he wondered how Mark would be able to control both.

Mark nodded with a small smile, “Youngjae’s a good drunk and Jackson knows better than to test me.”

“Ew, Mark,” Youngjae said before leaning towards JB to tell him “thanks for the party” while patting his arm.

Youngjae left to get his coat while Mark thanked Jaebum for the party and told him to stop by the cafe anytime he needed a pick me up.

"You two looked kind of close," Jackson commented once the trio stepped outside. 

"No way," Youngjae shook his head. 

Mark watched the two walk ahead of him slightly, Jackson trying to convince Youngjae that they would be a cute couple if one of them would just make the first move.

He laughed as Jackson stumbled and Youngjae cackled at him before toppling over himself. The look of shock on Youngjae’s face was priceless. 

Then he sighed as they started to raise their voices, reminiscing on high school days. 

When they got to Youngjae's apartment, he made Jackson drink some more water as he made sure Youngjae got ready for bed. He left a glass of water and some Ibuprofen on his nightstand, checked that his morning alarm was on, and locked the door before the two left.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Follow me on Twitter :)   
> https://twitter.com/ninaaavan


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Youngjae is bold.

"Good morning," Youngjae greeted Jaebum tiredly.

"Morning. Yugyeom is bringing you an egg biscuit."

"Oh, that's nice of him. The party was wonderful."

"It was pretty good, wasn't it?"

"Mhmm. I'm wiped now, though."

"I can see that."

Youngjae appreciated that he didn’t say anything about his alcohol consumption, even if he agreed that Youngjae wasn’t quite as bright as usual.

"Hey, Jaebum?"

"Yes?"

"Would you want to go on a date with me?"

He looked shocked, but he was cute.

"Uh, yeah, yes. Yes, I would like to," he stuttered. Youngjae didn't take him for the nervous type. JB always seemed so confident and cool. 

"How about Friday? We can get dinner and see a movie uptown, if you want."

Jaebum licked his chapped lips, "sure. What time does your store close?"

"I have Taehyung close for me. What time do you close the parlor?"

"I can leave around seven."

"Let's say seven then. If you need more time I can wait."

"Seven it is."

Youngjae smiled at him, tired eyes relaxed into a sweet smile before he waved goodbye and pushed the door to his shop open.   
. . .

A while later, Yugyeom stopped in with breakfast for him.

"I was halfway to the shop when Jaebum told me to go back to get this, so I hope you like it."

"You didn't have to," Youngjae gasped. Yugyeom handed it to him, looking tired as well. 

"And risk Jaebum fucking my ass with a cactus? No way. Plus, I don't mind. Also, he said these are yours."

Youngjae accepted the glass roses and set them behind the counter. He ate his egg biscuit as he talked to Yugyeom. He couldn’t work and eat at the same time, so he might as well catch up with his friend while he had the chance. 

"So, done any cool tattoos lately?"

"Oh yeah! I did this sick Neo-traditional mushroom on a girls thigh. It was really colorful and kind of trippy. Like we incorporated the Hand of Hamsa into it and everything."

"Sounds cool."

"It was!" He pulled his phone out of his pocket to show Youngjae the pictures he took. 

"You're very talented," Youngjae complimented.

"Thanks! You should let me design you a tattoo," he joked.

"I'm not really into New School or Neo-traditional tattoos for myself."

"Me either. How about geometric or realist?"

"If you design me one, I'll look at it. I prefer black and white."

"You're better off asking JB-ssi," he sighed. Yugyeom’s lack of confidence in his own work made Youngjae frown. 

“Just because something isn’t in color doesn’t mean you can’t do it, Yugyeom-ah.”

“I just don’t like the way my work looks if I don’t use color.”

Youngjae sighed, sensing he wouldn’t get anywhere with the conversation.

"Well, I can't get any tattoos anytime soon anyways."

"Why not? If it's money, you know JB would give you a break."

"Ah, I couldn't ask him to," he lied with a wave of his cut up hand. 

He needed to be able to give blood to his mom and he couldn't do that if he got a new tattoo. 

“What happened to your hand?”

“I’ve been handling a lot of roses and I’ve cut myself a few times in my rush to get things done.”

Youngjae was embarrassed to say that the larger cuts are from when he had drunkenly tried to clean up the glass of water that Mark had left on his nightstand for him. Sometime after Mark tucking him in, he’d gone to stand up and knocked the glass over. When he came back from the bathroom he’d cried and picked the glass up, and cut himself. 

On the bright side, the sharp sting of his palms had sobered him up. 

“Take care of yourself, Jae. And I’m sure you can have Jimin take on some more of the work if you have Taehyung come in to do more of the cleaning and stuff.”

“I have everything under control for now,” he smiled. 

. . .

"Youngjae-ah!" Yugyeom yelled as he burst into the store.

Youngjae startled and his customer whipped around. 

Jimin shushed Yugyeom as he sheepishly apologized. 

He heard the two talk about Yoongi with stupid grins on their faces as he apologized and continued to help his customer plan an arrangement for their “annual Christmas extravaganza”. 

When eventually they left and the store was empty again, Yugyeom and Jimin bounded up to the counter. 

"You didn't tell me you asked JB out!" He shrieked, pointing an accusatory finger at him. 

"Or me!" Jimin added. 

"I just asked him this morning," he said nonchalantly, picking his scissors back up and trimming stems of some baby's breath. "And I didn't think it particularly concerned you."

"Well damn, boss," Jimin scoffed. Youngjae sent him a look and Jimin held his hands up in surrender.

"How did you even find out?" Youngjae asked Yugyeom. Jaebum didn’t seem like the type to gossip or share the details of his personal life with others, not that Youngjae was perturbed by the others knowing.

"The most horrifying thing. JB-ssi was smiling. And he blocked out Friday night on the calendar without a reason. He almost always puts the reason."

"So where are you taking him?"

"We're going for dinner and a movie."

"Basic," Yugyeom groaned. “That’s so predictable.”

"Are you gonna take him home after?" Jimin waggled his eyebrows. "Show him why they called you Dandelion?"

"What does that mean?" Yugyeom asked with his eyes wide open. 

"Don't," Youngjae said in his serious tone. Jimin's eyes twinkled. 

"Is that a challenge?"

"I swear to God Jimin, I will tell everyone on this street about the time you accidentally dropped acid at the Orchid Club."

"How do you accidentally drop acid?"

Jimin narrowed his eyes, "do it and I'll go get Jackson right now and tell him about your date."

"Wait, are you afraid of Jackson?" Yugyeom's head was spinning with all of the threats and unanswered questions. 

"Park Jimin, I will tell Yoongi what happened when you spent last Christmas with your ex-boyfriend and don't think I don't have the pictures to prove it."

Jimin gasped, "you wouldn't."

"Try me, Jimin."

Yugyeom shuddered at the look Youngjae wore. Who knew the smiley owner of the Sunshine Room could be so. . . devious and scary. Maybe he and JB were a better match than he initially thought.

"Well it was nice talking to you Yugyeom. I have work to do," he said. The doorbell saved him as he went to tend to the customer and sell them plants. 

"I'm so confused."

"You're going to stay that way."

Youngjae watched Yugyeom leave defeatedly. Then he glanced to Jimin who was attentively assisting the new client.

Most of their volume this month was poinsettias, so he wasn’t surprised when the shopper left with four of them and an order for a dozen roses delivered three days before Christmas. 

“I upsold her those poinsettias,” Jimin said proudly. “She was only going to buy two but I told her if she bought four she could give them as gifts for her mother and sister. I should get a raise.”

“Yes, Jimin, I’m going to give you a raise because you sold two poinsettias beyond what the customer wanted.”

“Aish, I was just kidding. Have a sense of humor, Youngjae.”

. . .

"We figured it out!" BamBam cheered as he entered the store. "Oh, Youngjae's not here."

“Hospital?” Yugyeom wondered. 

"He left about an hour ago," Taehyung told the two. "What did you figure out?"

"Youngjae's nickname was Dandelion because when you blow him his seed goes everywhere!"

"... I don't know what to make of that."

"Ask Jimin."

"Chim, is Youngjae called Dandelion because he's a flower boy and when you blow him his seed goes everywhere?"

"I can neither confirm or deny under threat of being exposed for Christmas of 2017."

"Oooh," Taehyung cringed. "That's the roast pig thing, right? Heard, loud and clear."

BamBam wondered what that meant, but at least he and Yugyeom had figured out one thing. 

He shared a look with his boyfriend. 

They'd have to uncover the roast pig thing next.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you guys for leaving comments :) I've been reading them all but not responding because I don't want to inflate the comment count!   
> If you want to talk to me you can find me on Twitter :)  
> https://twitter.com/ninaaavan


	7. Chapter 7

Slippery plastic scissors were clenched in Youngjae’s hand when the bell above the door sounded. 

The door opened and Jimin stopped just inside the door. It quietly shut behind him, but Jimin remained frozen.

Youngjae glanced up from the stems he was cutting to see Jimin’s puzzled face.

“What?”

Jimin then peered around the store to make sure there were no customers before slowly walking towards Youngjae. 

“What’s with the outfit? You never wear pants that tight.”

“I haven’t done my laundry lately.”

Jimin eyed him suspiciously, “then why are you wearing that shirt again? You only wore it two days ago.”

He glanced down at the shirt that he’d just washed. Damn if his lie didn’t contradict the truth like that. And damn Jimin for being so attentive. 

“I’m re-wearing it.”

“Your hair is done.”

“What’s with the interrogation?”

“I want to know what’s going on.”

“Nothing. Now get to work.”

Youngjae continued with his task and Jimin disappeared into the back for a few minutes.

When he returned, his face was no longer pensive, instead it was a forced neutral.

“Wait, I figured it out. Your date is today.”

Youngjae tried his best to ignore Jimin but the slow grin that spread across the older’s face spelled trouble. 

“Oooh, you look nice,” he complemented, devious glint in his eyes. 

“Thanks?”

“You must really want to impress JB.”

“I mean,” Youngjae gave a half-hearted shrug, wanting to seem cool. “I guess? He’s seen me in work clothes and a nice outfit already, so I figure it doesn’t matter.”

“Dressing up for a party and dressing to impress your date are two different things.”

Youngjae used to never mind how sly Jimin could be, but now he’s definitely starting to loathe it. 

“Are you gonna ask him to take you home after? You know, go about things the coquettish way?” Jimin winked.

It was time for him to put a stop to the conversation, the only way he knew how. 

“You mean the way you re-dyed your hair after the holiday party? For a certain tattoo artist?”

Jimin froze before running a hand through his caramel colored hair, “I did this for me. It was time for a change.”

“Sure,” Youngjae nodded.

He didn’t believe him one bit. 

Jimin kept his comments to himself for the rest of his shift.

. . .

Cold air stirred by a sight breeze was definitely the cause of Youngjae’s cheeks tinting pink. 

When Taehyung had come in for his shift, he and Jimin had started tormenting him and now their words were circling in his brain.

Taehyung had little to no shame, so he couldn’t embarrass him into silence like he had with Jimin. And Jimin had been emboldened by the arrival of his best friend.

He’d made his escape earlier than necessary to sit outside (away from his employees) even if it was chilly to sit in the shadow of the building. 

The fresh air was calming, though, so his nerves started to dissipate. He didn’t want to be a nervous wreck. For someone that had never experienced stage fright or any sense of unease about talking to people, this was strange. 

Trepidation was waxing and waning in him before stagnating at a low level. 

He could do this. 

The door to the tattoo shop opened, but he paid it no mind. Instead he was trying to excite himself. Besides, the last three people to walk out of the shop had been customers, so he wasn’t going to look. 

"Hey," Jaebum called to get Youngjae's attention.

Youngjae looked up to see Jaebum looking delicious in a leather jacket with what was probably a white long sleeve thermal shirt under it. His legs, especially his thighs, looked good in black jeans. 

Youngjae hoped his gray pea coat and dark wash jeans didn't look terrible. It had been a while since he went to buy new clothes.

But it’s not like clothes really mattered to JB. He’d seen him in various states and was still interested enough to go on a date, Youngjae reminded himself.  
He could do this.

"Hey," he greeted as they started walking. 

"I'll drive us," JB said as they approached his car. 

"Are you sure?"

"I said I would. It's too cold to walk," he added. 

Youngjae smiled and got into the car. 

Just play it cool, he thought to himself. 

They made small talk about their workdays in between Youngjae feeding him directions to his favorite casual restaurant. Apparently JB had tattooed six people that day, something Youngjae found surprising. Six seemed like a lot. 

He stared at Jaebum’s side profile and admired him for a moment. Not only was he incredibly good looking, he was incredibly talented if the success of his business was an indicator.

Once they sat in the restaurant, conversation seemed to flow freely and Youngjae forgot why he was ever nervous in the first place.

Their dinner was enjoyable-- Jaebum and Youngjae shared their meals. Youngjae thought it was sweet. Jaebum could tell that Youngjae liked his better but refused to ask for more, so he handed Youngjae his plate before asking if he could have half his entree in exchange for half of Jaebum's.

It was a first for Youngjae. None of his other dates had treated him like that, but then again, he probably wouldn’t have done that for any of them, either. Maybe it was because he asked JB out, or maybe it was because there hadn’t been an expectation to date when they met. He’d felt more comfortable on a first date with JB than he had on dates with exes he’d been with for months. 

Jaebum took his time eating. He gently cut his steak before savoring every bite. Youngjae was transfixed by the way he moved his jaw. He barely noticed the way he let his own mouth wrap around his fork as he ate his roast chicken. He enjoyed the heavy feeling of Jaebum's eyes on him and when they made eye contact, he felt his heart rate pick up speed.

After dinner, Jaebum took Youngjae's hand claiming he couldn't trust the younger to walk without running into something. To be fair, Youngjae’s face had been turned upwards for a while as he was distracted by the Christmas lights in town. The lights were gorgeous in the evening sky, strung between trees and light posts.

"Sorry, I just don't remember all the lights being so beautiful last year," he claimed. 

"They are nice, aren't they?"

"Look at the trees in the park!"

Jaebum thought they were going to miss the movie, but as long as Youngjae was happy looking at the light displays, he didn't mind. 

"Oh, we're almost late," Youngjae exclaimed before trying to drag Jaebum to the theater. 

"The movie looked bad anyways. Let's go watch the light show in the park."

"You're not too cold?" Youngjae worried. 

He shook his head. 

Jaebum's jacket didn't look that warm. Youngjae pulled off his red scarf and tied it around JB's neck before taking his hand again. 

The lights at the park were magical and Youngjae took pictures of JB with his phone. 

"Come on, Jaebum-ah, smile for the picture!" Youngjae laughed happily as Jaebum let a real smile grace his face. Youngjae finally felt comfortable enough with him to address him informally. 

Jaebum took his phone out to take some pictures of Youngjae. He looked so free in this moment. No sadness about his mom or store related stress was weighing him down as his wide eyes took the lights in with an almost childish look of wonder across his pretty face. 

With a slight tug to JB's hand, Youngjae pulled him to sit on a bench with him and watch the lights change color. 

"Youngjae-ah?" Jaebum asked. 

"Huh?" Youngjae asked, turning to look at him. His breath hitched at how close Jaebum was. He could make out two moles just over his eye, something that was really endearing to him for whatever reason. 

"Can I kiss you?"

Youngjae nodded once, motion stilted by timidity before tilting his head up and meeting Jaebum's lips halfway in a gentle kiss. 

Warmth bloomed in his chest as Jaebum put his warm hand on Youngjae's cheek. 

Youngjae put his hands inside Jaebum's jacket and gasped when Jaebum's other hand found his way to his thigh. 

They pulled away after a moment, "I liked that a lot."

"That's probably the most positive remark you've ever made to me," Youngjae commented. "But I liked it a lot too."

"Should we do it again?" He asked, a dangerous glint in his eyes. 

"Yes, but not here," Youngjae's voice was low. 

"We're going to my apartment," JB decided for them. Youngjae nodded and let himself be led back to the car.

The ride back to JB's was spent discussing plans for another date. When they got there, JB poured them both a glass of wine while Youngjae went to pick out a show on JB's Netflix to watch. 

He looked around the living space. It was clean and sparsely decorated, sort of reminiscent of Sorry Mom. The rug under his feet was still new, he could tell by the lack of discoloration and the way it felt soft under his feet. The photos that hung on the wall were black and white stills, mostly of night scenes. They looked professionally done, but JB seemed artsy, so he wondered if they were his.

“Did you take those?” He pointed to the framed photographs when JB walked into the room. 

He set the wine glasses on the table and then looked over his shoulder as he stood. 

“Oh, yeah.”

“They’re really nice. You’ve got an eye for photography.”

“Thank you.” 

JB settled on the couch first, but Youngjae stayed standing. 

“Where’s Nora?” Youngjae wondered, looking around the room for any traces of a cat. There weren’t many toys around the living room. 

“Probably sleeping somewhere.”

“Is she friendly?”

“She sleeps a lot,” he shrugged. 

Youngjae didn’t have a ton of experience with cats but assumed that meant she didn’t get up to greet people.

He settled onto the couch and Jaebum turned on the TV, going straight to Netflix.

“What would you like to watch?” JB asked. The florist took a sip of his wine before answering.

"I feel like a teenager," Youngjae giggled, not truly answering the question he was asked. 

"Why?" 

JB reached for his own glass of wine, holding the remote in his left hand.

"I'm not sure. Maybe because I don't intend to watch what's on the TV."

A devilish grin spread across the artist’s face as he took both glasses of wine and returned them to the coffee table and invaded Youngjae's personal space.

It didn't feel like long that they had spent kissing and laying together on JB's comfy fabric couch. Youngjae wasn't actually paying attention to the TV, instead enjoying the way the lights made JB appear in the dark apartment. Jaebum’s large hand was warm in his butt pocket, occasionally squeezing gently. Youngjae thought that if he died in this moment, he would be happy.

"Should I bring you home?" Jaebum asked once the screen paused and the words 'are you still watching?' appeared. 

Youngjae looked at the clock flashing 11:30 and sighed, "yeah."

"What's wrong?"

"I don't want this night to end."

Jaebum smiled softly, "it's okay. I don't either, but we're going out next week and I'll see you tomorrow."

He paused for a minute to stare at Jaebum’s smile. 

Wow. 

“What?”

“Nothing,” he hurriedly said, standing to move away from his thoughts of how handsome the older was.

Youngjae helped JB clean their wine glasses before he was driven home by JB. 

When it came time to go, Youngjae leaned over and kissed JB's cheek.

"I'll see you tomorrow. Good night, Jaebum-ah."

"Sweet dreams, Youngjae-ah."

Youngjae didn’t waste time getting to his apartment’s door. When he did, he turned and waved to JB as he drove off.


	8. Chapter 8

"Choi Youngjae!" An angry Jackson yelled as he entered Youngjae's store. 

"Can everyone stop coming in here yelling all the time? What if I had customers?"

"You're not open yet," Jackson pointed out before dramatically pointing his finger at Youngjae, remembering his anger. There was an untamed fire in his eyes and Youngjae did not want to be burned by Jackson’s rage. "You did not tell me that you had a date with the sexy tattoo artist."

"It must've slipped my mind."

"What's that grin mean? Is there another date in the future?"

"Maybe," he smiled wider, thinking of the museum date he had scheduled with Jaebum this week. There was a Japanese art exhibit and since Jaebum had taught Yugyeom how to do Japanese style tattoos, he thought it would be a cool thing to check out. Jaebum had told him he wasn't a huge fan of doing Japanese pieces because he felt he wasn't great at them, but he liked them a lot. 

Whatever their opinions were, it seemed like a more meaningful date than dinner and a movie, at least.

"I want all the details! Mark told me that if I didn't come back with the complete report he would sell my snapback collection on Craigslist."

"No sex ban this time?"

"Why would he punish himself like that?" Jackson scoffed and ignored Youngjae’s ‘gross’. “How was your date, Jae? Mark and I were up all night thinking about you."

"Are you sure that's why?" Youngjae asked under his breath, but Jackson either ignored him or didn't hear it.

Jackson’s face didn’t change, instead he just looked expectantly at Youngjae, expression intensifying when he didn’t answer right away. 

He looked funny, eyes wide and blinking dramatically, hand on hip. If anyone could blink dramatically, it was definitely Jackson Wang. 

Youngjae laughed a little at him.

“It was really sweet actually. I like him a lot.”

"What do you like about him?" Jackson asked, motioning with his hands for him to continue explaining. 

"His smile, his laugh, his personality. The two little moles under his eyebrow. His broad shoulders. How calm he is. . . "

Jackson squealed, "now back to business, tell me where you went and what happened."

"We went to dinner at the Wheelhouse and we were supposed to go to the movies, but I got distracted by the lights in the park so we walked around there instead."  
"Okay but tell me all the cute stuff that happened. Did you hold hands? Did you kiss?"

"We shared our dinners and we held hands in the park. I don’t kiss and tell. But after that we went back to his apartment to watch TV and talked until he brought me home."

"Choi Youngjae!" Jackson gasped like he'd heard something scandalous. "I thought Mark and I told you-- never before the third date."

"Wang Jackson," Youngjae mimicked, "you jump to great conclusions with those short legs."

"Shut it before I gag you with your apron and shove those tulips up your ass."

"You realize what that sounded like, right?" Youngjae cackled.

Jackson left the store in a hurry, cheeks red with embarrassment and frustration. 

Youngjae hoped he wouldn’t send Mark in for information next.

. . .

"Youngjae! You really went out with JB-ssi last night?" Yugyeom burst once he'd made it to the back counter of the store and checked for customers. 

BamBam ran in behind him, "dammit, Gyeom, I said wait for me."

"Not that it particularly concerns you," Youngjae stated with eyes narrowed in concentration as he ties wire around the stems of a particularly ornate and large bouquet, "but yes."  
"How was it? How was he?"

"Are you going on another one?"

"What did you do?"

"Was he a gentleman?"

"Ooh did you--"

BamBam slapped a hand over Yugyeom's mouth before he could say anything else, effectively stopping the table tennis conversation they'd been having about Youngjae.   
“He can’t answer if we keep asking questions.”

"We went for dinner and then walked and looked at Christmas lights. He was a gentleman and we are going on another one. Nothing else concerns you."

"Aw, sorry. We got too excited."

"JB-ssi has never gone on a date? Or, not with someone we liked. So we were just really curious as to how he acted since he's so serious at the shop."

A smile made its way onto Youngjae's face as he finished the bouquet and thought of Jaebum. 

"Look at him smile, Gyeomie!" BamBam shrieked and clutched Yugyeom's arm. “It’s love.”

Youngjae tuned out the rest of his gushing. Fortunately, his rant was cut short by the phone ringing so the two made their exit.

. . .

"Hi, Jungkook. What can I do for you?"

"Oh, hey Youngjae, what time does Tae come in?"

"He should be here around two."

Jungkook looked nervous and made no move to leave. 

"Is there something else I can do for you?"

Looking particularly pale, Jungkook collapsed against the counter. 

"I want to ask him out and make it pretty and perfect, but I don't know what to do."

"Haven't you guys already gone out?"

"Yeah, but I want to, like, make him my boyfriend, you know?"

"Ah," Youngjae nodded in understanding. He was used to customers coming to him like this, and occasionally friends would come in as well. "Why don't you tell me what you have planned out already?"

"Nothing. I'm so torn. I could take him to an expensive restaurant, or buy him the new Gucci shirt he has his eye on, or I could--"

Jungkook looked stressed as he started to list his ideas. Youngjae interrupted him gently and Jungkook’s hand pushed through his hair as he listened.

"It sounds like you're willing to spend a lot of money on Tae, but I'm going to be honest with you; I don't think that's what he wants."

"What do you mean?"

Youngjae laughed at the younger's lost expression. 

"Taehyung likes you a lot. I think he'd rather spend time with you. So, maybe you shouldn't worry about the price of it and more about the effort."

"I..." Youngjae could almost see the gears turning in Jungkook’s head as the boy poked his tongue into his cheek. While Jungkook’s thoughts were loading, Youngjae elaborated.  
"Sometimes I have customers come in and pick the most expensive arrangements that I offer. Sometimes I have customers come in and buy simple carnations because those are the favorite flowers of their significant others. Do you see what I'm saying now?"

"So it's not the money that matters, it's that I know Tae."

"Right," Youngjae nodded sagely. 

"Thanks, Youngjae. I'll probably be back later so I can buy him some flowers."

"He likes lilies," Youngjae called after him, watching Jungkook hurry out of the shop. 

. . .

"Ah, Taehyung, here you are."

"Am I late?" He asks worriedly, pulling his scarf off from around his neck and shedding his coat as he walks through the store.

"Not at all. But Jungkook was in here earlier and you better make your move soon."

"Did he say something? Is he tired of me?" His eyes widened and his mouth opened slightly. 

"No, silly. But you won't get to ask him out over your home-cooked dinner with flower petals if you don't do it tonight."

"Are you saying that he wants to ask me out?"

Youngjae didn't say anything else and watched Taehyung sweat as he loaded the car to do an extra delivery run. 

“Why would you tell me that? I’m so nervous now,” he whined as Youngjae double checked that all the addresses were on the paper for Taehyung’s delivery run.

“Here. And don’t be nervous. You were ready to do it last week, so make sure you actually do it this time.”

Taehyung looked more nervous when he came back from his deliveries. Youngjae could tell by the way his hands shook slightly and he chewed on his lip. 

“Tae, clean up and go home.” Youngjae nodded at the poor boy. Taehyung scrambled to get his chores done.

He left work early to plan for his date with Jungkook and Youngjae didn't see Jaebum based sheerly on how busy it was for a Saturday before Christmas. He had too many people stop in last minute. 

Then he sold out of roses which were the easiest to sell since they formed their own arrangements. So for the last three hours that the shop was open, he had to create each arrangement individually and count on the customers to be patient and knowledgeable about the types of flowers he offered. 

Had Taehyung been there, things would have gone quicker, but Youngjae would forgive him so long as he actually asked Jungkook out this time. 

By the time he locked up, he was exhausted.


	9. Chapter 9

It was Thursday afternoon and Youngjae felt nervous leaving the shop so early, but Jaebum had appointments in the afternoon and Jimin and Taehyung were watching the Sunshine Room now so this was likely to be the only time they could go. 

He knew he shouldn’t be nervous since the shop was in good hands and the last date had gone so well.

The biting winter air attacked his face as he and Jaebum walked down the street to the museum. It was only two blocks away so they decided to walk, but now he was regretting his decision. His gloves, hat, scarf, and gray pea coat didn't do much to stop the cold. 

Jaebum was in a real coat today, the puffy black kind, with a beanie on and mittens. He thought they were stupid, but he had left his own gloves at home and resorted to borrowing Yugyeom's mittens. 

How was he supposed to hold Youngjae's hand properly if his fingers were confined into one woolen space? Youngjae didn't complain, though. He just looped his arm through Jaebum's and cuddled into his side. At least this way his hands stayed warm within the pockets of his pea coat. 

When they walked into the museum they checked their coats and winter wear. Jaebum looked delicious in a heather gray Henley and jeans. Youngjae looked more mature than usual in a navy blue V-neck sweater and gray jeans.

They walked hand in hand through the Asian art exhibits until they reached the door to the special showcase of Japanese art. Youngjae liked art, but he didn't know much about it. Before he dropped out, he had taken plenty of bio classes in school along with music classes since he loved singing and the piano. Jaebum had studied art before abandoning it to pursue tattooing, so he told Youngjae some facts as they took in the paintings, prints, and tapestries. 

Youngjae listened patiently, genuinely interested in the things Jaebum was telling him. 

He began to tell the story of a woman whom he tattooed a dragon on. Apparently he warned her it may hurt, but she didn't shed a single tear throughout the process. It covered her whole thigh, he said. 

"What's the strangest tattoo you've ever done?"

"Definitely a dog on someone's stomach. But the belly button was supposed to be the dog's asshole."

Youngjae looked horrified and Jaebum chuckled before kissing his cheek. 

Jaebum broke his spell by telling him about a famous painter and the work they were looking at.

Once they had gone through the exhibit, they decided to walk back to their respective shops. Youngjae wished that they weren't so busy. He would love to repeat the cuddling on the couch session that they had enjoyed last week, but unfortunately, there were too many tasks waiting to be completed. 

Christmas was in three days and he still had a mile long To Do list. Taehyung was keeping the shop running for walk-ins, Lisa was doing almost all of his deliveries, and Jimin was getting good at making arrangements. 

Lisa was Jennie's friend who needed some spending money and had a license. Jennie, who often could be found at Espresso Lane, baking there while JiSoo used their home kitchen to fill food orders. 

Even in the chaos of things their community pulled together to get things done. Youngjae really liked being a part of the South Street scene. He didn’t have a lot of friends outside of the community and his family was. . . limited now. But his friends made him feel like he wasn’t alone and he hoped he made them feel the same way. 

Businesses were flourishing in the area lately, Christmas shoppers wanting coffee, books being purchased for gifts, and lastly food and flowers for the celebrations. Youngjae assumed tattoos were more popular in summer, when people could show them off. Or in spring, so that they could heal before people wanted to go swimming and to the beach. People still seemed to be going in and out of the shop, though, so he figured he didn’t know anything about it and let the thoughts go. 

Youngjae felt crazy, he was constantly signing for deliveries, arranging flowers, making deliveries, answering phone calls, and doing whatever else needed to be done. He made his best effort to see his mother everyday, but she told him to focus on his work. She would be around a little longer and as long as she saw him on Christmas, it would be enough. She was proud that he treasured her business. 

Youngjae worked until his fingers bled. Mostly from cutting stems and pricking his fingers on thorns, but also because his skin was softened from being damp so often. 

“Boss, my deliveries are done!” Lisa called one afternoon as she walked into the backroom where Youngjae was working with soft music playing. 

“I told you not to call me that. And okay, are you off schedule now?”

“I’m scheduled another hour, but the deliveries didn’t take as long as scheduled.”

“Oh, well would you mind going out again? I have four orders done.”

“If they can be done in roughly an hour. I can’t work overtime today, I’ve got a date later.”

“Yeah, they’re all on Church street so it’s just getting to the block the houses are on that takes the longest.”

“Okay, which four?”

Youngjae began to pull buckets out of the coolers, checking the contents before helping Lisa load the van so she could go make her last deliveries of the evening. 

She came back quickly and bid Youngjae goodbye. He told her to have fun on her date.

His nights got later and his mornings got earlier until finally it was Christmas day and he was done. 

It was weird, but he was definitely ready. He slept past five for the first time in weeks. When he got up he made himself some tea and sat in his kitchen for a while, soaking in the sun coming from the window and enjoying the quiet.

The shop was closed for the first time in months. He sat in the hospital with his mom and watched the Christmas day parade while she crocheted. He told her of some of the arrangements he'd made and how the others were doing. She was particularly interested to hear how Jinyoung was doing, having known his family since she moved into her shop. The Park's had owned the bookstore for a long time. 

The New Year's rush would start soon and instead of being covered in gold, red, and green glitter, it would all be silver by next week. 

His mom asked him how Jaebum was doing, if he was seeing him later, if they were dating yet. Youngjae told her that they had been out twice, but weren't boyfriends or anything yet. He hadn't thought to ask Jaebum to spend time together today, but he knew he was in the area.

"Yah, you silly boy. What're you still doing here? Go spend time with Jaebum. He'll be around longer than I will."

"Isn't that just an argument as to why I should stay here with you?"

"You know I can't be here forever. I want you to have friends when I'm gone, who'll help you when I'm no longer able to."

"Don't make me cry on Christmas," he warned. 

"Call Jaebum and invite him to dinner with you. Make him something nice."

"Yes, eomma," he groaned. 

They said their goodbyes and Youngjae headed home, calling Jaebum while he walked. 

"Hi, Jaebum-ah. Merry Christmas!"

"Merry Christmas, Youngjae."

"I don't want to interrupt or anything, but if you're not busy, I'd like to invite you over for dinner."

"Okay. Want to meet me at the parlor?"

"Sure," he answered, hooking a left and walking there. He supposed that was a good place to meet, somewhere in the middle of their apartments.   
When he gets there, he gives Jaebum a hug and receives a kiss. 

"Let's take my car."

Youngjae followed him into his black BMW and smelled the familiar seats. Today he heard old rock music playing softly through the speakers.   
"You weren't doing anything?"

"Got no family, so no."

"Well, I'm just glad you can hang out with me."

"Why aren't you with your ma?"

"I was with her all day. She yelled at me."

"What for?"

"For not investing in people that will still be alive next Christmas? I'm not sure. I think she wants me to be ready for life without her."

"You are."

"You think so?"

"You got a lot o' friends. More than I do at least. They'll care for you."

"Everybody on the street likes you," Youngjae informed him, frown creasing his face. 

"I don't care about them."

Youngjae frowned slightly. Jaebum stopped at a red light and turned to glance at Youngjae, eyes softened with fondness.

"Just you."

He smiled, "you care about me? I'm flattered, but I think you're gonna break Hoseok's heart."

"He's the one that works at Espresso Lane? And will work at Jin's?"

"That's him."

"Yeah, he's not gonna be too torn up. Trust me."

"What do you know that I don't?" Youngjae asked. 

"He's got his eye on one of my regulars. I'm doing a real intricate piece on Jay and Hoseok seems to bring coffees to the shop while he's in there."  
"Huh. Come to think of it, I've never seen your tattoos."

"If you wanted to see me naked, Youngjae-ah, you could've just asked," he smirked. Youngjae flushed. 

"That's not what I meant. It's Christmas, you sinner."

"That's never stopped me before. Come on, Sunshine, don't you want to sin with me?" He bit his lip. While it was probably supposed to have been funny, Youngjae thought the pout looked mostly stupid but still, somehow, sexy.

Youngjae licked his lips as he cleared his thoughts.

"I'm teasing you. I don't put out til the third date," Jaebum joked, reading Youngjae's silence as him being uncomfortable. Youngjae just didn't know how to say he wanted it but didn't feel ready.

Jaebum could be rough around the edges, but Youngjae liked him a lot. Sex was special and Youngjae liked the idea of having commitment before he made the decision to sleep with someone--

Youngjae changed the subject. No need to get so lost in thought about something that wasn’t a pressing matter.

"So, what do you want to eat? I have salad stuff, ramen stuff, rice and chicken, whatever you want."

"Just make what you want. I'm not picky," Jaebum answered.

When they got to Youngjae's apartment, they shucked off their outerwear and made their way to the kitchen. 

"Want a beer or some wine?"

"I'll take a beer."

"Good choice," Youngjae said, handing him a bottle. 

He walked back to the fridge and decided to make some fried rice. He and JB talked as he did.

They talked about where JB had grown up and how the area here had changed since Youngjae was a kid. Youngjae told JB about how he had a passion for singing and playing the piano, then JB confessed to having been a b-boy in high school and college. Jaebum told Youngjae about his mom and how she had been great up until she started using when he was a teenager. He never brought up his dad.

Youngjae didn't ask. 

After their dinner they settled onto the couch to watch old Christmas movies.

“This is nice,” Youngjae commented between films. 

“Yeah,” JB nodded, “the best Christmas I’ve had in years.”

“Really?” Youngjae turned to look at him, admiring the curve of his jaw and slant of his nose. 

Until Jaebum turned to look him in the eyes, “I mean it.”

They barely paid any attention to the next movie, instead focusing on the feeling of lips on lips and skin on skin before staring into one another’s eyes and talking about whatever came to mind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry about the wait :(  
> But thank you all so much for your kind words :)


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is straight mush. Maybe a little sad, I guess.   
> Also I added some of to this chapter without editing it so if the verb tenses are off, that's why.

A soft tinkle emitted from the bells above his door. He waited a moment to see if it was his friend or a customer.

"Youngjae?" So a friend. He could tell the voice belonged to Jaebum and besides, customers never walked in and called his name like they were friends.

"Hmm?" He called, not looking up from the arrangement he was currently working on. 

"Would you be comfortable with me meeting your mom?"

"Of course," he said, taken aback by Jaebum's question.

"Okay. What about tonight?"

"Um, yeah, I was planning to go around six since visiting hours are strictly over at eight in her wing."

"Okay," he nods. "Meet me outside when you're ready. I'm driving."

"Sure," Youngjae nods. "Is everything okay?"

"I just want to meet her. I know you said that she wasn't doing well these past few days."

Youngjae's mood dropped at the reminder but he cheered himself up with thoughts of his mother and almost, kind of boyfriend laughing together.

"Oh, thank you. That means a lot to me and I'm sure she will be pleased."

Jaebum kissed Youngjae's cheek, "I'll see you then."

. . .

"So, you'll call him after we've been there thirty minutes?" Jaebum confirmed with Mark.

"Yep. I checked your location earlier, so you're good to go."

"Thanks."

"Don't let my boy down or I'll sic Jackson on you."

“Sure,” he rolled his eyes at the thought of Jackson being threatening. What was he going to do? Overfeed him? Smother him to death with hugs and affection?

Then he remembered the time some idiot was rude to his date and Jackson threw him out of the cafe.

Nevermind, maybe he was a little scary.

Jaebum hung up after that and entered the Sunshine Room. 

Youngjae was putting his coat on and Jimin was singing as he swept the store.

"Hey, you ready?" He asked. 

"Yeah," Youngjae smiled, pulling his gloves on as he walked through the door that Jaebum held open for him.

He walked to the BMW and got in. The car smelled strongly of pine today, a new air freshener hung off the rear view mirror.

"I told my mom were coming. She's excited to meet you."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah. She said it's a good day today, so that's good too."

“Good day as in she’s feeling well or?”

“Yeah. The hospital life is pretty routine so unless they had her favorite jello today or something, she doesn’t count them as good days. They’re just, like, null.”

When they get to the hospital, Jaebum watches as people perk up from the sight of Youngjae's smile. He's enthralled with Youngjae's energy and he's amazed to see that other people are too. It's not that Youngjae's unlikable, but he didn't think others would look at him with the same admiration as he did. Something was missing, though. They didn't want Youngjae like he did. They probably didn't foresee a future with him after only knowing him a short while.

They weren't afraid of him and the power his cheerful eyes and wide smile held. 

Jaebum was afraid. Afraid of losing someone that wasn't even his. 

He texted Mark to make sure he knew that he was at the hospital before going into Joo-Eun's room. 

What he was about to do was ballsy, even for him. He was more nervous than he had been in ages. He just hoped his words didn’t get all messed up. And that Youngjae’s mom wouldn’t think he was crazy. And that she would agree with what he was about to ask. 

God, when did the hospital get that hot? And when did his palms start sweating?

Youngjae stopped in front of a door and knocked softly before opening it.

She was beautiful-- probably had been more so in her prime, but even still, she had the same radiance that Youngjae did. The kind of energy that could light up a room. 

He smiled and shook her hand, introducing himself. She pulled him into a hug.

The three of them talked about the businesses on the street, Jaebum's interest in tattoos, and Youngjae as a kid. 

“You two have the same laugh,” Jaebum commented after they both stopped laughing.

Youngjae just smiled at him and Joo-Eun told him that it used to make Youngjae’s father laugh anytime they laughed. 

Their time was interrupted by Mark's repeated calling and the urgent text message "SOS!!!" that flashed across Youngjae's screen. 

"Um, excuse me a minute. It's apparently an emergency."

As soon as the door shut, Jaebum leaned in to address Joo-Eun. 

"Hear me out, Joo-Eun. I really like Youngjae and I don' wanna freak him out, yanno? But well, I jus' want your permission. To be with him. Maybe even to marry him, if things work out and if he'll have me. He talks about how important you are to him a lot, and I know your blessing would mean a lot to him--"

"Jaebum-ah, you haven't even asked him out yet," she smiled at him, ending his nervous rant.

He almost felt like she could see through him at that point. Was he made out of glass? 

"I'm goin' tuh do it," he promised her, accent coming stronger as his nerves increased. "I just want the day tuh be perfect for 'im."

"Do it soon," she smiled knowingly. "I'm glad you asked me. I don't have too long left, but it eases my soul to know he'll have someone to look after him."

"Thank you. 'M glad you understand why I'm askin' now when he doesn' even know how serious I am."

"Take care of him," she warned, "otherwise I'll haunt you."

"Yes ma'am."

Youngjae breezed back into the room then with an apology, "Mark's hot water heater broke, so I had to tell him how to get my spare key so he could get in and shower." He rolled his warm brown eyes as he talked.

Joo-Eun winked at Jaebum with a knowing smile. The churning of his stomach ceased and the longer he sat there and enjoyed their company, the better he felt.

The young men stayed for another half hour with Joo-Eun before they left at the end of visiting hours.

. . .

“So then Jinwoo had to read the note to the class about how much-- oh, we’re here. I’ll finish the story then get out.”

Jaebum nodded, listening to Youngjae’s stories about high school and the friends he hadn’t seen since they went off to college. 

“So he reads the note about how into Myungjun he is, and both of them are bright red, and the teacher clears her throat and tells them they should probably talk after class but to stop passing notes. And long story short, they’ve been together for a few years now. Anyways, thanks for coming to meet my mom. That was really sweet of you.”

“It was nothing,” he shrugged. Of course, it wasn’t nothing. JB hadn’t almost thrown up for nothing. 

Youngjae looked at him, and JB felt like he was made of glass again, but the tender affection on Youngjae’s face warmed his insides. It was like Youngjae could see beyond the tattoos and cold facade, like he valued him as a person and not just a body. JB hadn’t felt that way in a long time. 

He liked it. 

So he looked at Youngjae back and eventually the moment was broken by Youngjae’s smile, “thanks again.”

He felt Youngjae peck his cheek and then he was out of the car, walking into his apartment.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> follow me on Twitter, I follow back :)  
> https://twitter.com/ninaaavan


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote this story to be light and happy and then got sad halfway through so this chapter happened lol :(

“What happened?” Youngjae asked as he entered the cafe. He assumed Mark was in the kitchen since he wasn’t visible from the front of the room. 

Jackson shook his head, “his parents again. He went to meet them and they-- well, they were how they were. They just can’t let him be happy. So now he’s beating himself up again for giving them the chance.”

It was Youngjae’s turn to shake his head. Mark’s parents really could not stand to see him happy. “It’s not his fault at all. He was so brave to give them a chance,” he sighed. “I’ll go talk to him about it.”

“Jinyoung’s back there too.”

“Great, I know he’s good at talking people through things.”

Jackson nodded, “he is. I’ll man the front until one of our new employees gets here and then we’re gonna go home so he can relax. He’s been working really hard lately.”

“Good.” With that, Youngjae walked into the back of the cafe. 

“Hey,” he greeted the other two. Jinyoung shot him a smile and Mark managed a nod. 

“How’re you feeling?”

“I’m sorry to complain,” Mark said. He wouldn’t meet anyone’s gaze. 

“It’s okay, Mark.”

“You don’t have to deal with it right now, Mark. And there’s nothing to be sorry for. Why don’t you and Jackson come over to my place tonight? Chaeyoung and I were gonna make stew for dinner and Hyunjin left his playstation at my house, so we can play. It’ll be good for you to unwind and get your mind off things for a while.”

“We couldn’t--”

“You could,” Jinyoung countered Mark’s protests. Youngjae watches the two go back and forth for a minute. 

“Mark, you should go. And if you want to talk about it after you’ve slept on it a few days, I’ll be here to listen.” They both blinked at Youngjae.

“You’re welcome to come too, Jae.”

“I think I’ll have to pass, but thanks. And like I said, Mark, you don’t have to feel bad. You just have to work on feeling better.” With a smile, Youngjae excused himself from the room. 

“How is he?” Jackson wondered. 

“He’s gonna be fine. Jinyoung’s got a handle on it, and I should get back to the shop.”

“Thanks for coming, Jae. We don’t tell you enough but you’re a good friend.”

Youngjae smiled broadly and went to give Jackson a hug, “I love you guys.”

. . .

"Hi Youngjae-ah," his mom smiled tiredly as he slid the door to her room open. 

Something in the room was different. It still was predominantly white with green accents. It still smelled like antiseptic. It was the same cool 72 degrees Fahrenheit. It was the atmosphere. Suddenly it felt like the walls would cave in on him. He knew what was coming next. 

"I'm so sorry, Honey."

"How long?" He croaked, throat suddenly dryer than he'd ever felt it before.

"The doctors said a few weeks at most."

Youngjae collapsed into the chair next to her bed and put his head on the bed, hands shaking and tears flowing. He didn’t even want to know the details.

He tried to get a grip so that he could enjoy her presence. He scooted his chair closer to the bed and rested more of himself on the bed. He felt his mother's cold hand move to stroke his back.

"I'm sorry I'll never get to do the flowers at your wedding," she told him. 

"Don't be, Eomma. Please, that doesn't matter to me. What matters is that I got to spend the time I did with you."

"You're the best son I could've asked for, Youngjae-ah. I hope you'll be happy in this life. And don't forget I'll always be watching you, so stay away from the three ninja prohibitions," she teased. 

"You don't have to worry about me and girls," he chuckled through his tears. 

"I don't worry about you at all anymore. I know you're such a good man and that I raised you well."

"I love you so much, Eomma," he sobbed. 

"I love you too," she weakly wrapped her arm around his back as he laid his head on her chest, half his torso in her bed. "How's Jaebum-ah?"

"He's fine. He's booked with appointments today so that's why he's not here."

"He's a fine man, Youngjae-ah. I'm glad he makes you happy."

"I really like him, eomma," he confessed, crying more. 

"I know you do, Honey. Let him take care of you, okay?"

He nodded, knowing it would be hard to give his heart away. He had before and it hadn't ever worked out in his favor. His father had died and now his mother was dying. Not a lot of people had stayed in his life. He hoped, he really did, that Jaebum would be different.

His mother wanted him to be happy, though. And Jaebum made him happy. He deserved happiness he told himself, internalizing his mother's words. He would learn that all he needed was himself to be happy, and Jaebum could help him get there. The man already made him feel like he was beautiful, even though he didn't put it into words often. 

Jaebum had his own struggles, he knew. Things that had happened that made it hard for him to say how he felt. Youngjae was patient and kind. He encouraged JB to be open but understood that he couldn't sometimes. Youngjae got better at noticing the small things that JB did. The things that showed he cared, even if his words seemed cold. 

Youngjae was screwed and he knew it, but for some reason, he found it difficult to care. 

“I’ll try mom. I really will.” Her bony fingers carded through his hair in a comforting manner.

“That’s my boy. Now, stop being so sentimental.”

He really wished he could.

. . .

“He’s being overdramatic,” Hyungwon paused and looked to the door, “oh, hey Jae.”

“What’s going on?” Youngjae asked, confused since Hyungwon never worked the late shift. He was a tall new guy that usually worked in the afternoon between his classes if the backpack always slung over his shoulder was an indicator.

“Jin and Namjoon broke up,” Hoseok explained. 

“So Jin took off of work and I had to stay late while Kihyun went home. He’s being over dramatic as usual.”

Youngjae frowned. More bad news. First Mark, then his mom, and now this. He felt like a weight attached itself to his lungs, pulling the breathe out of them. 

“You wouldn’t be if your boyfriend broke up with you?”

“I don’t have one, but no. If I were in their shoes, I would get over it. Jin and Namjoon were together for a few months and it was more casual than anything else. It’s not like Mark and Jackson who are literally married and have their entire lives built together.”

“Doesn’t mean his feelings weren’t real.”

“It’s not like Namjoon hates him or something? He’s literally just going back to school for a PhD and doesn’t want to neglect Jin so he set him free. What’s so wrong about that?”

“Please stop bickering,” Youngjae pleaded when he could get a word in. “I can’t handle anymore bad news today.”

Hoseok’s face softened in concern, “let me make your drink and then we can talk about it.”

“I don’t want to talk about it, if that’s cool with you. I was just gonna go get some more work done and needed caffeine.”

“If you’re sure, you know we’re here for you. Or, like, literally anyone that has ever worked on the street. Seriously, everyone loves you Youngjae, you’re so radiant.”

“Everything’ll be fine, Youngjae. Should we have a rematch for best smile?”

Youngjae appreciated Hoseok’s thought, but couldn’t force more than a small smile to reassure him that he would be okay. And he appreciated Hyungwon’s words, even though he barely knew the tall man.

Hoseok handed him his drink and Youngjae waved goodbye before trudging back to the Sunshine Room. 

All he wanted to do was lose himself in some music and get caught up in the store. 

Since it was past eight and most of the stores were closing, he blasted his favorite songs, belting out the lyrics while cleaning things around the shop.

Cleaning helped him feel better, for whatever reason. Maybe it was because he was directing his attention at something that he could see results of immediately. He didn’t really know. 

And singing. . . singing just helped him release emotions, so to do the two actions at the same time was cathartic.

He needed it.

Why did everything bad always seem to happen at once?

“Are you okay?” Jaebum shouted over the music and Youngjae’s high note. 

He abruptly stopped singing and glanced at the door, feeling caught red handed. 

“Uh, yeah. I’m-- uh, I’m great. Nothing’s wrong.”

JB fixed him with a look that made Youngjae think he should start talking. 

“I’m just stressed and taking on other people’s stress.”

“You wanna talk about it?”

Youngjae shook his head ‘no’. 

“Well, you want company?”

“Is it rude if I say no? I kind of like being alone so I can think.”

“That’s fine,” JB nodded. “If you need anything, just text.”

“Thanks,” Youngjae forced a small smile. 

JB turned to leave, flashing him a smile, “nice voice, by the way.”

Youngjae flushed and locked the door behind him to avoid any repeats of the incident.

By the time he arrived home that night, he felt better. Lighter, somehow. He collapsed into bed and slept, knowing that tomorrow would be a better day. It had to be.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> follow me on twitter! I follow back! https://twitter.com/ninaaavan
> 
> and as always, thank you so much for the comments and kudos! I like to look at them when I'm having a rough day, they make me feel better :)


	12. Chapter 12

"Youngjae-ah, will you talk some sense into Jaebum-ah?" The door swung open and by the huffing and angry footsteps, he could tell it was one of his friends and not a customer. He was just glad that no customers were currently in the store.

"What's wrong?" He asked Yugyeom, looking up from the bows he was tying. 

"He's all worked up because his building flooded and he can't go home tonight."

"Oh," he frowned. "I'll talk to him, let me finish this bow."

“Thank you. He’s been in such a bad mood all day and Nora is in his office.”

“He brought his cat? Is that, like, sanitary?”

Yugyeom shrugged at his question, “she stays in there. But I need to go before he gets mad at me for leaving.”

Youngjae shooed him out and wrapped up his task. 

"Jimin!" Youngjae yelled. 

"What?" He heard. Jimin was probably in the back room working on something or taking a short break. 

"I'm stepping out. Watch the front."

A muffled 'okay' sounded and Youngjae followed Yugyeom’s path into Sorry Mom. He made his way to Jaebum's office and knocked before poking his head in. 

The artist pushed his chair from his desk slightly and adjusted himself. 

"Hey, I heard your building flooded."

Jaebum's expression was icier than normal and Youngjae guessed that based on the way his jaw stuck out, he was mad. 

"It's not your problem."

"Well, maybe I can make it better anyways. Come stay with me tonight."

For a moment, he thought his offer would be rejected. 

Jaebum's eyes widened, "are you sure?"

"Yeah! Well, um," his cheeks turned bright red as he laughed nervously, "we'll have to share a bed, but yeah."

"Okay," JB nodded. "Then when you close your store come over here. I'll drive us."

"Sure," he smiled before heading back into his store. “And try not to stress too much about it, okay?”

“Okay.”

He felt something brush against his leg and reached down to greet Nora. 

“Is Nora cool to stay here tonight?”

“Yeah. Why? Got something planned?”

“I just didn’t want you to have to move her litter box and stuff. Now I gotta get back to the store.”

Rap music played in the reception area of the tattoo shop. It looked cleaner than usual and smelled strongly of lemons. Maybe they had just cleaned. 

“Hey Youngjae,” Yoongi smiled from the front desk. Youngjae thought it was special to see the man’s gummy smile since he didn’t smile at people often, apart from when he looked at Jimin. 

“Hi Yoongi. How’re things with Jimin?”

“He still doesn’t want a relationship, but we’ll see. What can I do for you?”

Ah, right. Jimin had told Youngjae that a few days ago. He’d admitted to Youngjae that he wasn’t ready to date Yoongi after knowing him for only two months. Without knowing if it was a dig at him or not, he’d told Jimin that time didn’t matter if you could trust the person to be open with you. He tried not to take offense to the words. 

Youngjae didn’t know if that was really all there was to the issue, but he didn’t want to pry. 

“I’m here to wait for Jaebum.”

“Oh, right. The flood thing. Well, he’s with Jay right now.”

“Jay?” Youngjae wondered. He tried to think if Jaebum had mentioned him before when talking about work and his regulars. Often times he named them, but sometimes he didn't.

“Yeah. A regular client of his. He probably wouldn’t mind if you sat in on his session, want me to ask?”

“You don’t have to,” Youngjae declined airily, but he was curious as to what JB looked like while focusing on his work. “I can go sit down and wait.”

“Give me a minute.”

Yoongi slid off the stool and lazily slunk back to JB’s room. He disappeared completely from sight and came back out of the room a few minutes later with a smirk on his face. Youngjae looked up from the tattoo book he’d been studying.

“Go on back.” His head tilted back towards JB’s room, platinum blonde hair shifting and a dark glint in his eyes. 

Youngjae hesitantly walked back into the room.  _ Why had Yoongi looked like that? _ The room was mostly filled with machinery. The walls were white and covered in art work. Rap music played lowly in the background-- probably not his almost boyfriend’s choice. The lights were on bright. 

Lying on a chair, shirtless, was a customer. 

“This the boyfriend?” The guy asked. 

Jaebum finished the line he was working on and glanced up, giving Youngjae a small smile. 

“Youngjae, this is Jay. Jay this is Youngjae. And we’re not technically dating yet.”

Youngjae ignored the stab in his heart and smiled at Jay. “Nice to meet you. So what’re you getting tattooed?”

“I’m gonna have this sick lion on my chest and it connects to my arm.”

“I’m doing shading on it, now,” JB commented. 

“Oh, that’s cool.”

“Yeah, your boyfriend is the best tattoo artist in town. He’s been doing my shit since he first touched a machine.”

JB largely ignored the praise and continued working, eyes sharp as he moves his hand steadily. 

“He’s amazing, isn’t he?” Youngjae agreed. 

Jay was a funny dude, Youngjae discovered. He made lots of stupid jokes that made Youngjae laugh. They talked freely about nothing of importance while JB worked. Jay wasn’t from the city, but did some work here. Youngjae thought it was cool to talk about things that weren’t South Street since Jay wasn’t familiar with the area.

It was nice to talk to someone who didn’t know anything about him for once. 

"Youngjae-ah?" Youngjae stopped his hands, key turning in the lock to listen to Jaebum. "I hope you don't mind what I'm about to do."

Youngjae was confused but turned the key and pushed the door to his apartment open. 

He gasped as he took in his apartment living room. It didn't look like his apartment anymore, it looked cozier. 

"Is this a pillow fort?" He asked, eyes taking in the fairy lights strung from the bookshelf to the lamp to the nail where his favorite painting used to hang. 

"Do you like it?" Jaebum asked nervously. 

"I love it! I haven’t made one in years," he answered. "This is seriously the cutest thing anyone has ever done for me. How did you pull this off?"

"Remember when Mark called to get your spare key? I asked him and Jackson to set this up while you were at work. I had Yugyeom ask you to let me stay here so you wouldn't suspect anything."

"You would've tipped me off if you had asked for help yourself," he chuckled wryly. “And you brought Nora to your office and everything.”

“I just wanted her in the office, but yeah.”

There was a pause and Youngjae couldn’t put his finger on why it suddenly felt awakward.

"Youngjae-ah, the reason I did all this... Is so that I could ask you-- will you be my boyfriend?"

Youngjae answered with a kiss and an "of course" before pulling Jaebum's jackets off. The tension in the room dissipated. He kicked off his shoes and his own coats before pulling JB into the fort with him. 

"There's pizza in the fridge for when we get hungry and some beer," Jaebum told him. 

"I'm not hungry for that right now," he answered as he snuggled closer to the taller man. 

They made out for a while, but stopped when they got hungry. It was then that they noticed that neither of them had shirts on. 

"Your tattoos are so cool," Youngjae breathed, fingers tracing the dark ink lines. 

"I did all of these myself," the older gestured to the sleeve of tattoos on the lower part of his left arm. Youngjae supposed that was the limit of Jaebum’s reach.

"Really?" Youngjae led him to the kitchen by his hand and busied himself getting the pizza as Jaebum talked. 

"I did them on myself as practice when I was an apprentice. That's why the styles vary."

Youngjae observed the way the tattoo styles blended as the quiet hum of the microwave filled the space. The kitchen lights seemed bright compared to the lights in the fort. The upper part of his arm was tribal that went into some geometric shapes. His forearm had mainly black work and realist tattoos. Even though the artist said he was an apprentice when he did them, it was difficult to tell. He really did have the talent for his work. 

Youngjae went to get the pizza out of the microwave and Jaebum stood behind him, hands on his hips. His mouth pressed a kiss to the younger's tattoo on his shoulder blade. 

"You should let me touch this up," Jaebum murmured. "The buddhist rosary is nicely done, but the lotus is fading."

"Maybe," he cleared his throat.

"I thought you liked tattoos, Baby."

"I can't give blood if I get a new tattoo."

It took JB a minute to put together why Youngjae would really want to give blood. When it clicked, he decided not to push the issue. If the florist wanted to talk about his mom, then he could, but JB wasn’t one to bring things up unnecessarily.

"Ars longa, vita brevis," he read. "Is that the tea drink at Espresso Lane?"

"Indeed it is. Shall we take this into the fort?"

"Yeah," he answered. 

The two crawled into the fort, Youngjae first, who accepted the pizza so that Jaebum could then crawl in. Youngjae turned on the TV and turned on the DVD player. He loaded his favorite movie into the machine and grabbed the remote before turning and wiggling his way into Jaebum's arm. 

He ate his pizza against Jaebum's chest and all was well before sauce dropped onto the older's bare chest. 

JB looked down at Youngjae who glanced up at his boyfriend with eyes wide open before averting his gaze and shyly licking it off JB's pectoral. 

Youngjae liked the goose bumps that sprang up on JB's warm skin and the hitch in his breathing.

"You taste good," he told him.  _ What the heck did I just do? _

"I'd love to taste you," JB mumbled before he could think better of it.

"Maybe later," Youngjae teased before turning his attention back to the movie, slightly panicked at what he had blurted out. "The best part is coming up."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This whole chapter makes me cringe, looking back. Oh well. Sorry for the wait!
> 
> https://twitter.com/ninaaavan


	13. Chapter 13

“Hey,” Youngjae called out to Jaebum. 

“Hey, Baby.”

Youngjae paused, but then continued.  _ Baby _ . That seemed fine. 

“Mark and Jackson are throwing a pajama party for Valentine’s day since their flight got cancelled. They told me yesterday. Wanna be my date?”

“Tonight?”

Youngjae nodded, “you can stay at mine after.”

“Okay. Only if you’re my valentine, though.”

“Oh man, Jackson will be crushed. I usually third wheel him and Mark.”

“Hm, well, I don’t like to share.”

Youngjae just smiled at him.

Jaebum was dressed in ridiculous pajamas-- everyone at the party was. Youngjae had bought them for him when he heard about the party. Jaebum's were red with black cats and Youngjae's were blue with white dogs. At least he wasn't clothed in baby pink silk like Jin and Mark were. Jimin's pastel purple pajamas were a close second in terms of his least favorite. Jackson had on a dog onesie as did Jinyoung and he kept referencing a high school inside joke. To be honest, Youngjae had forgotten about the whole “Wang gae Park gae” thing.  

"So," Jackson started and Jaebum turned to him. "You're dating our Youngjae now."

"Yeah. Thanks to you and Mark."

"He would've said yes if you had texted it to him, but we wouldn't have given you the best friend seal of approval if you had done that. Don't screw this up. Youngjae can't handle anymore hurt."

"I won't." He felt the weight of his words in his chest. 

The night was wild with music playing loudly and alcohol flowing. Youngjae got roped into a drinking game with Jinyoung, Yugyeom, and BamBam that involved lots of drinking and lots of yelling.

At midnight, Youngjae flung himself into Jaebum's arms and pressed his lips to his boyfriends. Jaebum tasted like rum and coke. Youngjae tasted like a white gummy bear.

"Happy Valentine’s day," Youngjae grinned widely. He was definitely drunk. 

"Happy Valentine’s."

"We should go home soon, Kitty Cat."

"Kitty Cat?"

"Yeah, 'cause you love cats. I'm gonna call you that now," Youngjae traced his boyfriend’s cheeks gently with his fingers. "This is where your whispers would be. No, whiskers, not whispers." Youngjae stopped whispering.

"Okay, you've had enough. Let's get you home."

Jaebum and Youngjae said goodbye to all their friends before bundling up to make the short trip to Youngjae's apartment. 

When they got there, JB unlocked the door to let them in. Youngjae headed straight to the bedroom as the less drunk of the two got them waters. 

“Stay here. It’s too late for you to go home and then you can just take your car in the morning and not have to come back for it.”

Youngjae had his pajamas off and was in his boxers complaining about how hot he was. 

Jaebum set the glasses on the bedside table and the younger stripped him of his clothing. Jaebum found it ironic that his pajamas were removed to go to sleep, but he didn’t like the feeling of pajama pants anyways. 

"You smoke?" Youngjae asked. He had felt a box of Marlboro's when he took Jaebum's jacket off. He tossed it gently on the chair in his bedroom and settled onto his bed.

"No, Yoongi does. Confiscated 'em."

"Hmm," Youngjae sighed. "That's good."

"My old man used to smoke."

It was quiet between them for a moment. Youngjae sleepily gazed at Jaebum. 

"I want to know everything there is to know about you, Im Jaebum. But tomorrow, when I'm not so tired."

"Of course, Baby." 

In the soft morning light of his apartment, Jaebum looked like an angel. Youngjae was warm from Jaebum's skin and the muscular arm wrapped around his waist.

"Mornin'," JB mumbled.

"Good morning."

"Your skin is so pretty. I would love to mark it," Jaebum said in a low voice, fingers trailing his chest softly.

“Someday I will let you,” Youngjae confessed, envisioning JB tattooing something over his heart. He almost had it already.

“What’s the tattoo on your back?”

“I always liked the rosary and the lotus seemed to fit with it.”

“Is it because of your mom?” Jaebum asked, hoping to confirm his suspicions. 

Youngjae nodded. "It’s kind of a tribute to my upbringing. My dad died when I was young. I don't really remember him. So for most of my life it's just been my mom and me. I had to find peace for my dad dying and I know my mom loved him a lot, so I got it for her, too. Soon I won’t have her anymore."

"You still got me," Jaebum assured him. “And your friends-- pretty much the whole of the shopping district on South street.”

"What about you?"

"What about me?" He raised his eyebrow. 

"Can you tell me about your childhood? Your family?"

Jaebum shifted to get more comfortable, pulling Youngjae closer to himself. 

"My dad was an alcoholic so my mom left 'im. We lived on our own 'til she ditched me for hard drugs. Then when she got clean, her new husband didn't want kids. I was sixteen then."

Youngjae sighed and crushed the sadness in his heart, "You didn't deserve that. But, you still got me."

JB really hoped he did.

 

. . .

 

It was early. Youngjae didn't need to check the clock to know. His alarm hadn't rung yet.

It was quiet and Youngjae counted Jaebum’s breathes until his alarm rang. He had almost been lulled back into sleep.

With a groan, he sat up, “I don’t want to work today.”

“Hangover?” The older flipped himself over but left his face out of the pillow so he could look at Youngjae.

“You made me drink enough water last night that I’m mostly fine.”

“Hmm,” JB acknowledged, face smushed into the pillows as he laid on his stomach. 

Youngjae sighed and got ready for work, trying to be quiet as JB rested.

“Lock up when you leave. I’ll be at the shop,” Youngjae said after pressing a kiss to the back of his boyfriend’s head.

“Okay.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yo guys, sorry for the wait. Sometimes I just lose all track of time? Idk. Time is a social construct anyways. 
> 
> Hope you enjoy :)


	14. Chapter 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> TW: death
> 
> This chapter is pretty sad and Youngjae's mom passes away. Please feel free to skip to the next chapter if you feel you're not able to read it.

Jaebum was sitting in his office when Jimin ran in, panting, “JB-ssi it--”

Without needing Jimin to say the words, he sprang up and ran out of the shop to get to Youngjae, Jimin was hot on his heels. 

It had happened. There was no other reason Jimin would have bursted into his office like that and the panic on his face had been clearer than day.

Once in the store, he saw Youngjae hyperventilating by the counter, pressed against the back wall.

"Youngjae, baby, come here," Jaebum breathed as he rushed to Youngjae to hold him. His younger boyfriend was falling apart. He couldn't hold him together and he knew that.

"I knew it was coming and I still--"

"Shh, shh, shh. Please, Baby. Please calm down, we can talk about it all you want, but don’t panic. Deep breaths. Nice and slow."  He watched Jimin switch the sign on the door to closed and motion that he’d be next door if needed.

The taller comforted Youngjae by letting him cry into his shirt. Tears dotted Jaebum's eyes as well. He'd only been to see Joo-Eun a handful of times, but he had appreciated her kind eyes and honesty. She was the kind of mother that he wished he'd had while growing up. Her miraculous son she'd raised on her own was an indication of how great she was.

He hated to see Youngjae so sad. He had only known him for about four months now, but in that time, despite everything, he had been bright and happy. 

"Let's get you home, then you can cry all you want." 

He texted Yoongi to tell Jimin to take care of the store and guided Youngjae into the car.

 

. . .

 

Youngjae cried until he didn’t have anymore tears. Jaebum set up the coffee table with water, tissues, Youngjae’s favorite snacks, and a trash can. He sat with him for hours, stroking his hair, his back, his arms. He didn’t know what he could say to make Youngjae’s hurt go away.

Death wasn’t an easy thing. Jaebum personally believed that the emotions needed to be processed-- even if he was barely capable of doing it himself.

Once Youngjae stopped crying, he sniffled until he eventually feel asleep. Jaebum lowered him onto the couch before sneaking out to call Yugyeom to check on the parlor. He had texted the regular who was supposed to come tonight for a session to see if he’d be cool with re-scheduling and told Yugyeom to get the designs for the next two appointments off of his desk. He asked him if he was confident doing it and to call the people and see if they would mind. If they were upset, he was authorized to give a thirty percent discount and re-schedule the tattoo appointments. 

Jaebum felt bad, but he couldn’t leave Youngjae in his time of need. There would be more customers-- there would never be another Youngjae.

 

. . .

 

“Tattoo me,” Youngjae pleaded in a soft voice. “Mark me.”

“Not tonight, love. You’re not in the right mindset.”

“I’ve been waiting for so long to get more tattoos and now you won’t let me,” he sniffled. 

“Because you need to grieve first. When you’re ready, I’ll tattoo your whole body if you want me to.”

“Mark me another way, then. Help me forget for a little while.”

Jaebum just shook his head then and held Youngjae close. Another time, any other time, he would gladly partake, but how could he do that when Youngjae wasn’t thinking straight?

 

. . .

 

Cool black latex danced across Youngjae’s warm skin. 

Jaebum had designed a sleeve for Youngjae with his input three days later when Youngjae was in a more sound state of mind. He’d traced the design onto Youngjae’s skin and asked his boyfriend if he was ready and sure that he wanted to do it.

“If you don’t do it right this second I’ll get Yugyeom to do it.”

“Don’t make me punish you for that later, Choi Youngjae,” Jaebum threatened before starting to work on the tattoo. 

Youngjae didn’t like color tattoos that much-- Jaebum would’ve assumed the opposite to be true-- and he liked the idea of having a sleeve similar to the one the tattoo artist had done on himself, so JB was creating a garden of black and white flowers. Vines would tangle along his arm too. 

The session dragged on with Youngjae telling stories to Jaebum and the latter occasionally responding. Most of his focus was on the piece. Jaebum hadn’t been so nervous to tattoo someone since the day he was being certified. He was absolutely terrified to mess up something that his baby had trusted to put on him. 

That tattoo would be there forever and JB could only hope to be in Youngjae’s life that long.


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey all! I'm posting two chapters because I didn't want to leave everyone hanging on a sad note. 
> 
> If you haven't read chapter 14, you may want to do that, but I've also posted there a TW for death. 
> 
> If you skipped that chapter the only other significant thing that happens is Youngjae gets a tattoo from JB.

Youngjae felt like he was rebuilding slowly. He wasn't over his mother's death-- and no one expected him to be-- but it only took him about two weeks to bounce back to a completely normal routine. It's what his mother would have wanted. 

Two weeks after her death and the first day that he hadn't cried had already long passed. The numbness had worked itself out of his bones with every grateful smile from a customer and every kiss from Jaebum and every stupid joke his friends told to cheer him up. 

His mother had told him to prepare himself for when she was gone and he was surprised with how easy it had been. He almost felt  _ guilty _ that he wasn't more torn up, but he was truly comforted by the fact that his mother was no longer fading away in a bed, dealing with bouts of nausea, kept in a bubble to avoid infection... 

He sighed as he worked on an arrangement. It wasn't easy to say goodbye, but he was starting to come to terms with it on an emotional level. 

"Hey," Jimin smiled brightly as he entered the store. "You're looking well today. I'm a fan of that sweater."

"Thanks," Youngjae smiled. 

"How are you feeling today?" He asked normally. After the third day of people walking on eggshells around him, he'd exploded. 

Fortunately, Mark had forgiven him, let him cry to him, and hugged him at the end. 

He remembered the days when Mark would've gotten angry at him and thrown something, but now he was calm and gentle and understanding. He’d come a long way.

Since the episode, his friends had learned to talk to him like normal. Nothing was worse than being treated with the kid gloves.

"I'm okay today."

"Good to hear. Anything you want to talk about anything or is there anything I can do?"

"I think I'm really okay. Chaeyoung has sent me food and Seokjin has sent me a ton of frozen meals. Mark and Jackson are keeping me in check at home."

"And Jaebum?" He winked. 

"I couldn't ask for him to be any better to me."

"Good, good. Okay, now, can I tell you something?"

"Go ahead," he laughed. 

"Yoongi asked me to be his boyfriend and I said yes!"

"Aww! Congratulations!"

Jimin's smile was wider than Youngjae had ever seen it before and his cheeks were tinged a healthy pink. He’d anticipated this kind of reaction a few months ago, but the older had gotten inside of his own head and prolonged the ‘talking phase’ of his relationship. 

“What changed?”

“He wrote a song for me! An actual song. And I don’t know, it really killed my insecurities.”

"That’s sweet. I’m glad you’re not worried about it now. So, how'd he ask?"

"Well," a playful glare made its way to Youngjae. " _ Someone _ told him that I like jasmine flowers, so he bought a lot of winter jasmine flowers and put them all over his living room. He had my favorite ramen delivered and everything. I wonder  _ who _ could've told him my favorite flowers and what kind of ramen I liked."

"You mean he didn't know your ramen order? Can't say I blame him. I still don't," Youngjae feigned ignorance, like he didn't know that he and Taehyung had sat in the backroom with Yoongi after closing last week and planned it all out so that Jimin would finally say yes. 

Youngjae felt like the matchmaker of the street, but helping his friends find happiness made him happy. His mom used to always talk about how much she loved love and Youngjae felt the same way.

Helping Yoongi plan had been the perfect distraction from his despair and the funeral planning process. 

"Coconut broth with thin noodles, broccoli and bean sprouts, soft boiled eggs, fishcakes, tofu, seaweed, and black garlic oil is not  _ tha _ t hard to remember."

"Do you hear yourself?" He laughs. 

"Youngjae, I need help!" Jinyoung panted as he burst into the shop. 

"With what?" 

"I'm freaking out," he glanced at Jimin. 

"I'll be in the back sorting the ribbon and display stands," he excused himself. 

"I think I got Chaeyoung pregnant," he almost cried. 

Youngjae's face got stuck, mouth wide open before he breathed an "oh shit."

Jinyoung wailed, dropping his head onto the counter. 

"I came to you because Jackson would've screamed and Mark might've cried, but I thought you would at least say something," he mumbled.

"Well, calm down. It wouldn't be the end of the world would it? I mean, you two love each other, you have stable jobs, you'll be married this year."

"That's the problem. We're not married yet--"

"Oh come on, you're not that traditional--"

"She's gonna kill me if she doesn't fit in her dream dress. My mom's gonna flip shit."

"Wait a minute, that's what you're worried about?"

"Well, I'm also not sure I'm ready to be a dad yet, but that's a whole 'nother issue."

"How long has she been 'pregnant' anyways?"

"Well... Last night we-- I-- the condom--" Jinyoung stuttered and Youngjae blinked before cutting him off with an expression that made Jinyoung thinks he was stupid. 

"You mean you're coming to me when there's no evidence? And besides, isn't Chaeyoung on birth control?"

"Well... she hasn't taken her pills lately."

"Didn't she get the shot?"

"I don't know."

"What about emergency contraceptives?"

"I don't want to bring that home to her and tell her to take it. What kind of asshole will that make me look like?"

"Jinyoung-ah, if you're not ready for kids, and you're afraid that she got pregnant yesterday then you should talk to her about your options. You should probably talk to her now, actually. Ask her if she's protected and if not, then you can come freak out some more."

"Oh God. You're right. I should’ve just talked to her. I’m so dumb. This'll stay between us, right?"

"Yes," Youngjae nodded. 

“Thanks.”

Once Jinyoung left, phone already in hand, Jimin popped out from the back room. 

"And me," he chimed. 

"Christmas. 2017," he threatened. 

"I'm just kidding!" He defended himself with hands up. "I didn't listen in to your conversation."

. . .

“So, what’s the situation?”

“She’s not pregnant. She got the shot and I just blanked.”

“What happened when you asked?”

“She gave me that look like I was stupid. The same one you had.”

Youngjae cackled at his words and when he left, he wondered how his friend could be so mature sometimes, yet so dumb. Jinyoung had always been put together, but once in a while he panicked and jumped to conclusions before considering all of the facts.


	16. Chapter 16

A month or two passed and things had settled down. Youngjae and Jaebum were closer together than ever, eating meals together frequently and sleeping at one another’s houses more often than sleeping alone. Nora didn’t bother Youngjae much, but he was fine with it. Cats weren’t the most friendly creatures, but she made JB happy so he never complained. 

More than once Youngjae had been left with no other choice than to pull JB away from a stray on the street, lest he pick the cat up and take it home too. 

His thoughts were ended by the trill of his cell phone. It seemed too early for a customer to call, but people didn’t always check what time they opened and since he was here, he might as well answer it.

“Hello?” Youngjae questioned. 

“Is Choi Youngjae there?” Asked a voice that seemed somehow familiar. 

Wait. He’d picked up his cell phone and automatically answered like it was an old friend despite the random number. 

“Yes, speaking.” He tried to hold the dread from his voice at the thought of having accepted a sales call.

“Youngjae-ah! It’s Myungjun! I didn’t even recognize your voice!”

When it clicked as to who was on the other line, Youngjae smiled and stopped fiddling with things on the front desk.

“Oh hey MJ! It’s been so long!” 

“I know! I’m calling because I have news. I’m moving back up to Seoul to live with my boyfriend!”

“Congratulations! Oh, hey, my phone is ringing with a client. Can I call you back?”

“Sure, sure. Or text me! Talk to you soon.”

“Bye!” He chimed and switched phones to take the other call.

. . . 

“So, you’re back in town! It’s great to see you again. I feel like you look the same as you did back in chorus, but with better hair.”

“Thanks! You look great-- really healthy. I’m so glad I was able to get in touch with you. I had to ask around with a lot of old friends to see if anyone still had your number.”

“Oh, yeah. I’m glad you went through all that trouble. So what brings you back?”

“My boyfriend is a piercer and he got a job up here so we moved back. My parents are really glad to have me back.”

“I’m sure they are. So he’s a professional piercer, huh? That’s funny.”

“Why is it funny?”

“Oh, my boyfriend is a tattoo artist.”

“No way!”

. . .

“So, my best friend from high school is moving back here and his boyfriend is a professional piercer.”

Jaebum raised an eyebrow, “piercer? Park Jinwoo?”

“How did you know?”

“I hired him a few weeks ago.”

“No way!” Youngjae’s eyes widened. 

“You know his boyfriend?”

“Yeah! We used to be in high school chorus together. MJ’s vocals are amazing.”

“Well so are yours, so I’m sure his are too.”

“What makes you say that?”

“If you think he’s good then he has to be.”

“I guess. . .”

“Youngjae.”

“Okay, okay. Thank you for the compliment, sweetie.”

 

. . .

 

“Does Nora get along with dogs?” Youngjae asked JB one day. 

“I don’t know. Why?”

“I really want a dog.” He nervously rubbed his hands along his jean-clad thighs.

“I guess we could get one and see if they’re compatible.”

“Wouldn’t it break the dogs heart to adopt it and return it?”

“Don’t they do adopt for a day or something like that?”

“I don’t know, let me check,” Youngjae extracted his phone from his pocket and quickly looked it up. 

Jaebum just sipped at his coffee and watched Youngjae’s eyes focus on the phone screen.

“You’re right!” He smiled brilliantly. “Can we go today?”

“You want to spend our day off looking for a dog?”

Youngjae pouted slightly, making his eyes big as he let out a timid, “yes?”

JB just sighed softly, “okay.”

There was that smile again. Maybe it wasn’t his ideal day off, but as long as his sunshine was happy then it was fine. 

“This adopt for a day thing is really smart. We can use it to test if the dog will get along with the cat and at the very least, the dog gets a day out of the shelter. And I bet that the college kids around here who can’t have dogs in their dorms take advantage of it.”

“Yeah, that’s actually how I know about it.”

“You hang out with college kids?” Youngjae teased. 

“No,” he rolled his eyes light-heartedly. “Hyunjin told me.”

“You mean Jinyoung’s brother?”

“Yeah.”

“Oh, I didn’t know you guys knew each other.”

“We don’t really, but he’s a nice kid.”

“Yeah, he is.”

 

. . .

 

“Hi little guy!” Youngjae greeted the fluffy white dog excitedly.

“This is Coco. She’s about a year old. She’s not allergic to anything and she gets nervous if there are too many people around. Here are some emergency numbers and please try to return her before four, five at the latest,” explains the man behind the counter.

“Thanks,” Youngjae read his nametag then, “Seungkwan. We’ll take good care of her.”

“Sure. Have a nice time.”

JB just nodded at the man before escorting Youngjae and Coco out of the animal shelter.

“Where to first?”

“What if we take her to the park near our stores and let her run around some?”

“Okay.”

“Then we can take her to your place and see if they get along so that I can bring her to yours when I spend the night.”

“That sounds fine.”

“Great!” Youngjae excitedly kissed JB’s cheek before talking to Coco and walking her to the park. 

JB watched his boyfriend for a moment before shaking his head. Then he followed them.

 

. . . 

 

“It’s official!” Youngjae announced as he entered Espresso Lane with a smile. He’d checked that it was empty before walking in to avoid disturbing customers.

“What is?” Mark asked skeptically. Jackson mirrored Youngjae’s excited smile reflexively. 

“Good news?”

“I adopted a dog. Her name is Coco.”

He showed them the numerous pictures he’d taken on the day he rented Coco and since he adopted her the day before.

“Oh my God, Jae. She’s so cute. Let me look at my god-daughter,” Mark snatched the phone from Youngjae.

“Don’t get any ideas, Marky. You know we can’t have pets in our townhouse.”

“I know,” he silenced Jackson. “But I still have the spare key to Youngjae’s so I can go play with her whenever I want.”

“You still have that?”

Mark just nodded with a smile and handed Youngjae his phone back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [Twitter](https://twitter.com/ninaaavan)


	17. Chapter 17

“How would you feel about moving in together?”

“Really?” Jaebum asked. 

“Yeah. I’ve been looking at these really nice town houses. I’m tired of living in my apartment building. The new landlord is such a dick.”

“Okay.”

Youngjae almost squealed, “yes! Let’s go look sometime next week. I can call the realtor if you send me your schedule.”

“Are we still on for dinner this weekend?”

“Yes, if you’re still available.”

“Always available for you, babe.”

Jaebum considered when his lease on his apartment would expire. If he counted correctly it would probably be another few months. . . He could probably afford to pay for a townhouse and his rent, but didn’t want to. Maybe he could sublet it to some students or something. He’d have to pay attention to anyone talking about needing a space.

If Youngjae’s lease wasn’t up, he’d probably suggest that they wait. 

But it wasn’t like they would necessarily find a place in the first few days of looking. 

They had plenty of time to find the perfect place for them to live. In the meantime, Youngjae could move in with him in his apartment.

He’d have to bring it up later. Youngjae looked too excited now.

“We can start looking online later if you want.”

“That would be great. We can pick out a few to see and then ask my friend Dongmin to show us the places. He’s a great realtor and an old friend from high school.”

“Okay.”

Youngjae sighed happily thinking about finding a new place. He had loved his old place until the landlord decided to sell her property and his lease was transferred to the new owner. Rental extension options were in the contract, but even so, he didn’t want to stay. A townhouse nearby would afford him a chance to start in a new place. One that wasn’t encumbered by memories of his mother being ill. 

Besides, he figured it’s what she’d want-- for him to be happy and move on in.

He was staying close to his roots but allowing himself room to go. His dog would have more space, he’d be adopting a cat into his daily life, and he’d be moving in with someone he really cares about.

Yeah, she’d definitely be happy.

. . .

“Seungyoon and I are going to a tattoo convention in Japan. Do you want to go?”

“Oh,” Youngjae paused, “when is it?”

“It’s in a month. We just finalized our plans last night.”

“How long are you going for?”

“It’s a four day long convention so we were thinking a week in Japan including travel days.”

“Oh, I don’t know. I don’t think I can leave the shop for that long.”

“That’s okay. You can still think about it. I just wanted to give you the option. Besides, if you went with me you could show off my greatest piece.”

Youngjae chuckled and looked at the ink on his arm, “I guess I could. I’ll look at the schedule and talk to my employees.”

“Please do.”

Jaebum’s fingers traced some of the greenery in the piece on Youngjae’s arm. The younger shivered slightly and watched a smirk grow on his boyfriend’s face. 

“By the way,” Youngjae began before his curiosity could be stopped, “who is Seungyoon?”

“Seungyoon is a friend from school that ended up becoming a tattoo artist too. He learned from another artist at the same place.”

“Oh, really? Does he live in the area?”   
JB nodded, “no. We don’t get to see each other very often so if there’s a convention we both want to go to, we usually go together. It’s cheaper.”

“Yeah, that’s great that you still keep in contact. I’m sorry you don’t get to see him often.”

“That’s life,” JB shrugged. 

Youngjae felt the urge to sing the Frank Sinatra song, but figured now wouldn’t be the time. Instead he settled for getting up to refill their water glasses. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this one is pretty short. There's probably only going to be like 3 more chapters but they're going to be a little longer. 
> 
> I've been really busy with work and family and my birthday this week so next chapter shouldn't take so long.


	18. Chapter 18

“You’re home! Welcome back.”

“You didn’t scratch my car, did you?” JB teased with a wink before embracing Youngjae. 

“Yeah, about that. . .” Youngjae feigned nervousness. 

JB pulled back to look at him, humor gone from his eyes. 

For a moment, Youngjae relished in it before laughing, “just kidding! Your baby is fine. Now, let’s go. I’m pretty sure Nora and Coco are waiting for us.”

They started towards the car and Youngjae got into the passenger seat while JB deposited his suitcase in the trunk of the car. 

Youngjae had learned that JB loved driving so he usually defaulted to letting his boyfriend drive him places. 

JB never seemed to mind. 

“So, tell me about the convention.”

“It was pretty good this year. The guest speakers were better than years prior.”

“I don’t know much about tattoo conventions. Did you have, like, workshops, or?”

“Not so much for the artists, but for the people that come, yeah.”

“So did you go to any?”

“No,” he shook his head. “Seungyoon and were busy tattooing people most of the time or checking out the vendors there. I’m thinking of replacing some of the machines in the store so I was talking to different companies for a lot of the time.”

“Oh, that’s cool. Did you decide on one?”

“I’m just going to replace the models I have. I’ve been happy with the company and they’ve lasted a long time.”

“So, what else did you do?”

“Seungyoon took part in the tattoo competition and won third, so that was pretty cool. We went out to celebrate after that.”

“Awesome! He won third? Out of how many people?”

“Only like twenty competitors.”

“That’s still really good!” He paused and JB didn’t continue. “You didn’t enter?”

He shook his head no, “didn’t feel like it this year.”

“You have before?”   
“Mhmm.”

“Did you win anything?”

“Two years ago I came in first, but I haven’t felt like doing it since.”

“First place? I knew my boyfriend was a genius,” Youngjae smiled at him as they stopped at a traffic light. JB largely ignored the compliment like always, but a small smile pulled at his lips. “So, tell me about Japan.”

“What do you want to know?”

“Start with the food.”

.

.

.

“Did anything happen while I was gone?” JB asked Youngjae as they laid in bed. Youngjae contemplated if anything had changed in the last week while he looked up at the ceiling of their bedroom.

“Bambam and Yugyeom got in a fight so Yugyeom slept here for a few nights on the couch, but it blew over.”

“What’d they fight about?”

“Bambam’s old fling hit him up to see how he was doing. According to him, they ended on good terms, but Yugyeom was still jealous.”

“He doesn’t usually get jealous.” Jaebum’s arm was wrapped around Youngjae’s shoulder and his hand began to gently pet at the skin of Youngjae’s shoulder. He must’ve been petting Nora and unconsciously mirroring the movement with the other hand. Youngjae found it really cute when he did that. 

“I guess it’s because the guy is moving back here from, like, Australia or something.”

“Oh, so it’s Chan,” JB stilled. 

“You know him?” Youngjae tilted his face to look at JB’s pensive expression. He looked handsome like this, even though the angle wasn’t great.

“No, just heard a lot about him. They all used to be friends.”

“Oh, I wonder what happened, not that it’s any of my business.”

JB shrugged as best he could, “I’m sure they’ll work it out. Anything else?”

“I haven’t really talked to anyone this week, surprisingly. We are going bowling this weekend, though.”

“Who?”

“Like, the entirety of the street.”

“Yikes.”

.

.

.

“I love you,” Youngjae confessed before slapping his hand over his mouth. His cheeks turned scarlet and he panicked, hoping Jaebum would say it back or at least not freak out. 

This wasn’t how things were supposed to go.

First, Youngjae wasn’t supposed to do it at the pizza parlor. 

Second, he wasn’t supposed to do it front of their friends-- he didn’t want to pressure Jaebum into saying it back. 

Third, he wasn’t supposed to just blurt it out.

Fourth, he wasn’t supposed to be wearing a yellow t-shirt with B.I.L.F printed across the chest. 

It all started when Jinyoung had asked them if they wanted to go bowling. 

Someone, somewhere down the line, had turned one little game into a whole ordeal, and so now, all their friends were piled around a table on the pizza parlor side of the bowling alley in shirts that were either purple with “Three Hole Surprise” or yellow with “B.I.L.F” printed on the front. It had been an interesting evening, one that was more fun than the original plans had intended for.

They had met after hours at the bowling alley since Hoseok was friends with the owner of the place and played two rounds of bowling before ordering pizza to be delivered. 

Most of the pizza was gone as they sat around and talked.

Jaebum had just roasted BamBam for saying something stupid while Jinyoung yelled at Yugyeom for acting dumb. Youngjae was cackling when he caught Jaebum looking at him with a look that Youngjae couldn’t read. 

“Does anyone care if I eat the last slice?” Jungkook asked, not really waiting for an answer. 

“No manners,” Suga shook his head at Jungkook as he ate the last piece. 

Taehyung laughed with Jimin before they each kissed their boyfriends on their cheeks. 

Jungkook looked like a squirrel with his cheeks full of pizza. 

“Did you tell Youngjae yet, Jaebum-ah?” Jackson asked in a manner that was not as subtle as he thought it would be. 

Youngjae’s attention was captured by his words, “tell me what?”

Jaebum’s jaw ticked in anger at Jackson spoiling his surprise. 

Jackson’s eyes widened, but he squealed the truth anyways. “Jaebummie bought you a piano!”

Youngjae’s eyes widened as he looked at Jaebum and blurted out the words that changed his life-- “I love you.”

Youngjae didn’t hear anything else and didn’t pick up any movement in the background. His eyes were glued to Jaebum who looked surprised before he smiled the most breathtaking smile Youngjae had ever seen. Soft pink lips stretching his handsome face, pearly white teeth glinting in the low light of the closed bowling alley. 

“I love you too, Youngjae.”

Everybody around the table unfroze and the excitement was ten times greater than before. 

“I’ve been waiting for this moment for months!” Jimin yelled. 

“I’ve been waiting for this since I fucking met Youngjae!” Jackson exclaimed, not to be bested by Jimin. 

“I’ve been waiting for this since the day he made me break the car a.c,” Mark chuckled. “Someone else is now responsible for the child.”

“Yugyeom-ah, do you think they’ll let me plan their wedding?” BamBam stage whispered. 

“We’ll do the flowers,” Jimin and Taehyung volunteered themselves. 

Youngjae’s eyes widened as he panicked. Everyone was talking all at once and he’d just confessed something big and so had Jaebum and now they were already talking about his wedding?

JB reached his hand across the table to calm Youngjae.

“We’ll get there. Besides, I haven’t proposed yet.” JB’s wink and hand on his calmed him down enough to laugh and enjoy the moment. 

Maybe having his friends around wasn’t what he planned, but it certainly wasn’t as bad as he made it out to be. 


	19. Chapter 19

Youngjae collapsed onto the couch with a sigh, exhausted after a long day of moving. Coco jumped into his lap as he rested his head on JB’s shoulder. Slowly he ran his hand through Coco’s soft fur. 

Boxes crowded their garage and would until the recycling truck came to pick them up. A new bedroom furniture set with a King sized bed had been delivered that day.

Their new townhouse was. . . homey. Youngjae pictured the two of them being happy there for the next few years. The decor was simple and clean with a few pieces that didn’t quite match the layout, but that was all replaceable. The townhouse was three times the square footage of his old apartment, or something like that. Combining his and Jaebum’s furniture had been enough to fill most of the space with neutral pieces. Jinyoung and Chaeyoung had donated a bookcase for their living room that now housed photo frames of the two of them. Mark and Jackson had gifted them a dresser for their spare room. Jimin had offered them the armchair that was sat in the corner of their guest room, the bright green clashing with the dark theme of the room. It still served its purpose and Youngjae was pleased with how things looked for now. 

Not everything had to happen at once and he was cool with that.

His favorite thing about the living room was, coincidentally, the bookcase that Jinyoung gave him. Or, the photographs placed upon it, rather. He looked at a picture of his mom that he took about a year before they found out she had cancer. She looked so happy and radiant in it-- smile care free, eyes creased, hair flowing. He liked remembering her like that. Worry free and healthy and happy. She had been beautifully optimistic throughout her hospital stay and her looks had only faded as did the tan of her skin. 

If she could see him now, he was sure her smile would be the same as it was that day and every day since then. 

“I think my mom would really like this. We did a good job decorating everything.”

“Yeah. Who knew we had eyes for interior design?”

“I did. I mean, have you seen your tattoo parlor?”

“That wasn’t all me, though.”

“Well I figured you had at least some say in it since you are the owner, after all.”

“Yeah,” he agreed and pressed a kiss onto the crown of Youngjae’s head. 

The sounds of paws scraping at the door and a quiet meow broke the comfortable silence that had settled around them, causing Youngjae to laugh. 

“She’s been in there for at least an hour now. I’m sure she knows where her litter box is.”

Jaebum was already standing up to let Nora out. The cat wasted no time in exiting the bathroom and sniffed around the rest of the house. 

“Don’t forget to move her food and water into the kitchen.”

“I know,” Jaebum answered, already making his way down the hall with the bowls in his hands. 

Youngjae thought it was lucky that Nora and Coco got along well enough to live together. They never cuddled up, but they each laid at their owner’s sides in the King sized bed that night. 

“Are you hungry? We can order take out.”

“I’m sick of take out,” Youngjae groaned. “I unpacked the kitchen stuff, I’ll just cook something.”

“That sounds like a better idea. While you do that, I’ll go finish unpacking our wardrobe.”

“Sure, I’ll call you when it’s done.”

JB pressed a kiss to his cheek before walking up the stairs to their bedroom and into the closet that they would share. 

Seeing his clothes next to Youngjae’s in the same space like that was eye opening. Something about it clicked, this was real. Youngjae and he were really moved in together. They had a townhouse, decorated with their own furniture and their own art and they’d done it themselves.

 

. . .

 

When Jaebum had asked him to volunteer with him and help out a friend of his, he hadn’t realized he’d be responsible for other people. 

Young people, pre-pubescent with chubby fingers and ruddy cheeks. 

They were actually kind of cute.

Youngjae watched the little kids run around the park. He didn't know why exactly, but he felt freaked out. He wasn't normally afraid of kids, but these ones were so small and he was somehow in charge of them. 

One little girl looked at him and when he smiled at her she burst into tears and ran away, crying for her mother. 

Jaebum, however, looked softer than ever. His face was relaxed and welcoming as he played with the kids. He spun them around and made them take turns being lifted in the air. He pondered how JB’s back could handle all that stress but the older looked fine so he didn’t let it stress him out.

Youngjae could only help a group of brave little girls color. 

Jaebum played games with the kids, laughing and running with them.  They tackled him and climbed all over his body as he tickled some and pulled them off of him. 

They squealed and ran away when he let out a playful roar.

He didn't think he'd want kids-- wouldn’t consider it until he turned 30-- but watching JB with kids, looking so happy, made him wonder if he wanted kids. 

Surely he could do it, right? It was hard but not impossible-- the human race was still perpetuating somehow. Would he agree to adopt just because JB wanted to? He loved JB, but kids were a huge commitment. Especially for two self-employed men. 

They hadn't talked about it before, but Youngjae had a feeling that, despite his own up-bringing, Jaebum wanted to raise kids and have a family.

Oh boy, he was overthinking again. 

"Youngjae-ah," one of the young girls tugged at his sleeve for his attention. 

"Yes?" He asked, interested in what she was trying to show him.

"I drew you and Jaebum, and me and my brother, see?"

Youngjae took in the crudely drawn portrait and knew then that he would do it. 

"It's beautiful, Hana. You did great," he complimented. Soon all the other little girls were  begging for praise on their pictures of castles and lizards and princesses and spaceships. 

Sure they cried a lot if he made the wrong face, but when he saw their smiles and felt he finally earned their affection, it was all worth it.

He would adopt kids in a heartbeat. 

 

. . .

 

“You didn’t invite us to your housewarming party,” Jackson pouts as Youngjae walks into the Espresso Lane after his long weekend. 

He’s exhausted from moving and volunteering so he definitely needs caffeine to give him the energy to get through the day. 

“We didn’t--” Youngjae started to say but he was interrupted by Mark. 

“That’s because they didn’t have one,” he rolled his eyes. 

“Well why not? I think you should.”

“I think there’s just a lot going on and--”

“They don’t need to have one if they don’t want to, Babe,” Mark cut him off again. “Besides that, how did moving in go? You didn’t call us so I assumed it went fine.”

“It was fine,” he nodded. “I’m beat, though.”

“It can take a lot out of you,” Jackson looked concerned as he spoke. “What can I get you today?”

Youngjae looked up at the familiar menus and decor. He hadn’t looked up at the boards in a long time, but he was pleased to find that the menus hadn’t changed. They were still printed in the same aesthetically pleasing neutral brown that went with the rest of the cafe’s theme.

“Just some coffee, I trust you guys know what I like since I can’t see half of those words.”

“Are your eyes okay? You’ve never had vision problems before.” Mark commented.

“Oh no, Jae, please tell me you’re okay Sunshine.” 

Youngjae shrugged, “I think I’m just tired. I might need to get my eyes checked, though.” He glanced at his watch then to find he only had a few minutes left before opening, but it spurred Mark on. He hurried to make a cup of coffee for Youngjae. 

“Well, we’d love to come see the new place if you feel up for having us over,” Jackson informed him.

“Definitely. We’d love to have you guys over or do like a double date or something.”

“That sounds like a good plan,” Mark handed him his cup of coffee, “let us know when you’re feeling caught up.”

“Good luck settling in,” Jackson nodded enthusiastically. 

Youngjae waved goodbye and went nextdoor to find that the replacement he hired for Lisa was ready to start working. 

“You must be Jisung,” he greeted the younger guy. 

He nodded, hair bouncing at the movement, “it’s nice to meet you in person.”

Youngjae unlocked the shop and let him in before giving him a run down on the place. 

He enjoyed working less hours now. Business hadn’t picked up that much, but for the summer he could afford to have people work with the increased foot traffic and customers wanting flowering plants for their window boxes and yards. 

All he had to do was show up and put together some arrangements from time to time. Jimin had been promoted to manager, Taehyung had stayed on past the seasonal employment period much to his delight, and now he had two new employees to train. 

“Did you ever consider opening a second store?” Jisung asked him later that day. The young man was really easy to talk to and really funny. 

Youngjae had shrugged, “maybe. I’ve always liked the idea of moving somewhere else, but when I think about it, this is my home.”

“You could hire other people to do it.”

“It’s a trust thing. My mom started this business.It’s her baby. I couldn’t just let someone else run it without trusting them.”

Youngjae recalled the way his mom planted the seeds of her business before he’d even been born. He’d been told all of the stories about how hard working and tenacious she was. She had watered and nurtured the seeds until they grew and blossomed to the wonderful little spot that the Sunshine Room was. 

He was really fortunate to have a supportive boyfriend who put up with his long hours and sprawling mess of bill pay and hours and shipment info. Most of JB’s patience could probably be attributed to the fact that he knew exactly what Youngjae was dealing with since he had his own shop. 

“What about the manager? Jimin’s his name, right?”

“Yeah,” Youngjae nodded. “I couldn’t ask him to move away though. For now I’m content with the way things are.”

“That’s fair. I don’t mean to pry or anything.”

“It’s alright.”

Unfortunately, when it got quiet shortly thereafter, Youngjae couldn’t stop thinking about it. What did he want his future to look like? Up until a while ago he thought he’d grow old with JB in the city, probably in their townhouse, with whatever cats JB picked up off the streets and small dogs that wouldn’t antagonize the cats too bad.

But then he thinks about it-- there’s nothing holding him here. He could move out to the countryside and have a house and kids and a small army of feline and canine friends. The thoughts plagued his mind as he worked.

Jaebum brought him lunch and they ate it together in his office next door. 

JB told him about the clients he would deal with that day, Jay and some new people. Youngjae told him to send Jay his regards and about his morning chat with Mark and Jackson. 

“Do we have to go out with them?” JB groaned. 

“You don’t like them now?”

“It’s not that. I just want you to myself. Jackson’s so loud, but Mark’s too quiet. I don’t like going on double dates, you know that.”

“Well then maybe we should throw a housewarming party? Just invite a few people over?”

“Fine, but we hold it last minute so not all of them can come. We haven’t had time to just lounge around in weeks.”

“I know,” Youngjae patted his thigh. “We will soon.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter wasn't my best but I just wanted to post something since I've been AWOL for a little bit. I've moved twice in two weeks on top of working full time and just got Wi-FI back today-- I need my creative energy to come back. 
> 
> Thank you all for your patience, kind words, and those of you that followed me on Twitter! I really appreciate it. :)


	20. Chapter 20

“Youngjae, Baby, I have something to ask you.”

“Sure, what is it?” 

When he turned he found Jaebum on one knee. 

“Want to spend the rest of your life with me?”

Youngjae’s eyes filled with crystal tears as he nodded his head yes. He couldn’t make his mouth move to vocalize it, instead laughing happily as Jaebum gathered him into his arms and kissed him. 

Jaebum slid the engagement ring onto Youngjae’s finger and watched as Youngjae admired it. 

“I love you, Jaebum,” Youngjae whispered.

“I love you, too, Youngjae.”

Jaebum covered Youngjae’s breathtaking smile with a kiss.

“I have something to tell you, but you’re not allowed to cry.”

“What is it?” Youngjae asked, fearing the worst.

“The first day we went to see your mom in the hospital is when I asked her permission to marry you.”

“But... we weren’t even dating then,” Youngjae frowned, trying to think back two years. Jaebum doesn’t say anything and then it hits Youngjae.

_ He knew all along that this was what he wanted _ .

“I’m gonna break my promise,” Youngjae said, tears filling his sweet brown eyes.

He burrowed his face in Jaebum’s chest and let the tears flow. His boyfriend just kissed the top of his head and stroked his back. 

“Jaebummie, I don’t deserve you. You are the sweetest, kindest man to ever walk the planet.”

“I don’t know about all that.”

“You are. You’ve been through a lot and you’re still so kind. I never thought I’d fall in love with a man that picks up stray cats from the street.”

“They need--”

Youngjae shushed him, “I can’t wait to get married. Wait til we tell everyone else.”

 

. . .

 

“Hey Honey, I have something to ask you,” Youngjae said in a gentle tone when Jaebum got home from work. 

He hurried to set out his dinner and get him a beer, settling him into his seat faster than his turtle-like pace. 

Jaebum was slightly alarmed. 

“Time out, Jae. What’s going on?”

Jaebum could tell something was really weighing on Youngjae’s nerves. The younger never had dinner ready for him like a 50’s housewife. He never brought him a beer like that when he got home unless he was drinking too. The lack of redness on his cheeks and the absence of a beer at his seat was a tip off. And calling him Honey? Youngjae had never done that before, not that he particularly minded. 

“I have something to ask you. And you can totally say no. There’s no pressure. None at all.”

“What is it?”

“What would you think about, maybe, possibly, by chance, it’s completely up to you-- inviting your mom to the wedding?”

Youngjae froze as he watched JB’s face go from surprised, to a frown of not understanding, to pensive. 

“Why do you want to?”

“I don’t know. I just think that you probably have a lot of hurt in you still and it might be kind of nice.”

“Why do you think she would come?”

“She messaged me on Facebook.”

Youngjae flinched at the way his own voice came out as a squeak. 

“She did? What--”

“She said she wanted to know how you were doing, but that she understood you probably wouldn’t want her back in her life. She got remarried and has two kids that are probably in their late teens. They want to meet their brother.”

“I-- I don’t--”

“Take some time to think about it,” Youngjae scrambles and gives JB a kiss on both cheeks. “Just don’t let it upset you. I can always tell her to screw off.”

Youngjae excused himself after that to work on something else. It wasn’t his place-- he should’ve just stayed out of it. 

But then again, they were about to get married, so maybe it kind of was his place. 

 

. . .

 

“I don’t want to.”

Youngjae glanced up from the game he was playing on his phone as Jaebum walked into their bedroom. Coco sighed as she pressed herself into Youngjae’s leg, annoyed at JB’s noise-making. 

“Don’t want to what?”

“Invite my mom.”

“Oh, alright,” Youngjae blinked. 

JB sat himself on the edge of the bed. Youngjae saw how his hair was messed up in the back and his shirt collar looked stretched out, maybe from JB pulling at it. 

“I thought about it. She’s not family. You are. Our friends are. Coco and Nora are.”

Youngjae’s phone screen had since timed out, but he didn’t notice as he set it aside and reached towards his fiance. He patted his arm and asked him to lay down.

JB followed his instructions, veiled in a question, and settled onto the plush comforter on their bed. 

Youngjae traced the spots where he knew JB’s tattoos were as he spoke to him. 

“You don’t need to justify yourself to me. The choice was entirely yours and I’ll support you no matter what.”

“You don’t think it makes me a bad person?”

“Not even a little bit.”

 

. . .

 

“Wait, you’re getting married?” Jackson almost screamed. Mark busted out of the kitchen shortly after. 

“He did it?”

“You knew?” Jackson and Youngjae asked him, faces showing their confusion. 

Mark just nodded sheepishly, “I help him plan things a lot, I thought we established that.”

“Anyways,” Jackson pointedly turned back to Youngjae, “how did he ask?”

“Oh, we were just gonna watch a movie and I turned to pick one out and he called my name. And then-- there he was.”

“That’s so boring,” Jackson frowned. Mark smacked his arm.

“Shut up. You didn’t even ask me, just put a ring on my finger when I was sleeping.”

“I got too excited, okay?”

“You what?” Youngjae cackled. 

“We never told you that?” Mark asked. “I woke up with him staring at me, grinning like a madman and a ring on my finger.”

“Mark,” Jackson whined. “We agreed we’d stick to the coffee story.”

“That was before you started up your act again.”

Youngjae was struck in the moment how the two hadn’t changed much in the past eight months or even the few years before that. 

He wondered if getting married would change him, but he didn’t see why it had to. 

As long as he had JB by his side, changes didn’t really matter. They’d handle them all. 

“You told us before everyone else though, right?” Jackson questioned after he stopped pouting at Mark.

He nodded, “I’m headed to the bookstore next.”

“I think you should tell Bambam,” Mark said, gesturing to where Bambam stood at the doors of his store.

It was like Bambam could feel their eyes because he turned their way then started to approach the store. 

Youngjae waved goodbye to them and stepped out of the Espresso Lane and into the cool air of the fall. 

“Hey.”

“You’re getting married! I’m gonna be a part of the wedding, right? I’m thinking you should wear a white suit and JB in black. Yugyeom can make a playlist for the thing. Don’t worry about flowers.”

Youngjae laughed, “there’s plenty of time to work out the details. Slow down.”

“Yugyeom almost broke a glass this morning when he found out. He just dropped it.”

“Oh no--”

“JB and Yoongi told him it cost twenty dollars, you should have seen his face. Anyways, congratulations!”

“Thanks. I’m gonna go tell Jinyoung but I’m stopping by Sorry Mom later for lunch so we can talk more then.”

“Yes! I’ll start a folder of plans for the wedding.”

Youngjae felt a little overwhelmed at Bambam’s excitement so he made his escape quick. Jinyoung would probably have the least reaction out of all of them since he was so level-headed. 

Much to Youngjae’s surprise Jinyoung got mad. 

“Really? He doesn’t even have my approval.”

“We’ve been dating for, like, two years. You two are friends. Do you really not approve?”

“He was supposed to get my blessing first.”

“What are you, my dad?”

Jinyoung scoffed and crossed his arms over his chest, “I’m everyone’s dad. But fine. I suppose I’ll allow it. Congratulations, Youngjae.” 

He broke into a smile then and Youngjae smiled back, glad things had turned out. . . well, okay. 

“So, have you guys decided any of the details yet?”

“Not yet. He just asked me last week so we’ve only been talking about things.”

“Hm, well, if you need anything, ask Chaeyoung. She was in charge of our wedding planning and you know how well that turned out.”

Youngjae nodded, indeed their wedding had been beautiful. His fingers had been sacrificed in the process, but it was worth it for his friend’s happiness. 

“I will, thanks.”

“And I better be in your wedding party.”

Youngjae shot him a finger gun as he exited the store. 

He went to work and had lunch at Sorry Mom, listening to Yugyeom and Bambam squabble about whether or not Bambam should be planning his wedding. 

Later that day, he told JB, “I feel like everyone else is more excited than we are.”

JB just shrugged, “as long as we’re together, the ceremony part doesn’t actually matter. Now, let’s write the guest list. Seungyoon wants to bring his girlfriend and I know he’s going to be upset that he’s not in our party.”

“The seven of us is enough, right?”

JB nodded, “more than enough.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, I'm going to end this here before I turn it into a dumpster fire. Be on the lookout for my next fics, coming up soon. 
> 
> Thanks for reading, leaving Kudos and comments, and all your support along the way!
> 
> [Twitter](https://twitter.com/ninaaavan)

**Author's Note:**

> Check out my Twitter @ ninaaavan


End file.
